MY POLITICAL TRIAL AND 
EXPERIENCES 



Copyright, 1919 ^ 

By The JeflFerson Publishing Co., Inc., 
21 Park Row, 
New York City. 



WOl/ 







"^ 



My Political Trial and 
Experiences 



By 

JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY 



Including a Biographical Sketch of the 
Author 

By 

Major Michael A. Kelly 

Distinguished Service Cross, Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France, 

and Winner of the Croix de Guerre 

Late of the 165th U. S. Infantry, A. E. F. 

(The 69th New York Regiment) 



With Preface by / 
JOSEPH W. GAVAN, Esq. 



New York 

JEFFERSON PUBLISHING CO., Inc 

1919 



e*^ 



1,. 



.5 






PREFACE 

"He who stands on the eternal side of Right stan^ not alone, though alone he 
stands, for with him are the Unseen and under him are the Everlasting Arms." 

Patriotism and persecution are words often found in each 
other's company. Indeed anybody who reads history arig-ht 
must be struck by the frequent association. Wherever man 
has sought to reaHze his patriotic desires, wherever he has 
dared oppression and slavery, there has persecution threatened 
if not encompassed him. The records of every nation are rich 
in example. In the purple dawn of our own Republic the 
youthful form of Nathan Hale is silhouetted in immortal glory 
above the ignominy of the British gallows. And but yesterday, 
so to speak, a world paused in the mad orgy of war at the 
spectacle of the heroic Pearse and his associates facing the 
vengeance of the British Empire thattheir beloved Erin might 
not lose her soul. 

Happily, persecution unto death is rarely the penalty of the 
patriot in this Republic of ours. But from time to time, and 
at the present moment, there are lapses from national ideals 
amounting almost to tragic retrogression. A notable instance 
affecting the individual has been the arrest, indictment, and 
prolonged imprisonment of the author of this book, Mr. Jere- 
miah A. O'Leary, an American of militant and unsullied 
patriotism. In setting forth this record of his splendid and 
successful fight and of the sinister forces that beset the liberties 
of his country, he has rendered a valued service to patriotism 
the world over. The publication of this book will serve among 
other useful purposes to emphasize Mr. O'Leary's vindication 
by the Court and in the words of Edmund Burke, it will help 
"to protect the author against the calumnies of malice and the 
judgment of ignorance." 

The book will be read and read widely, for all over the United 
States Jeremiah A. O'Leary has countless admirers and friends 
— more than many imagine. The writer, therefore, considers 
the presentation of the salient facts of his trial as a real public 



VI 



Preface 



service, and Mr. O'Leary deserves the thanks of all those sin- 
cerely devoted to American traditions and to the ideals under- 
lying our institutions. 

Ireland has ever had many friends in America. Such have 
not been lacking even in the highest circles until recently. We 
cannot forget the distinguished honor paid to Charles Stewart 
Parnell when he was invited to and did address the Congress 
of the United States. During the recent war this signal 
distinction has been extended to Viviani, Balfour and others. 
Up to Parnell's visit this honor had been conferred but twice 
before in the course of a century. The celebrities held worthy 
of it were no less personages than the great Lafayette, friend 
and companion-in-arms of Washington, and the scarce lesser 
hero, Kossuth, Liberator of Hungary. Even in the past four 
years, when Anglo-philism overwhelmed officialdom and 
influenced and drugged the sources of public opinion, men 
of courage were found to warn the American people of its 
objects. They ran no risk save that of envenomed attack by 
a mendacious and a corrupt press. It was left for Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary to test the limits of safety as to life and liberty 
by public avowal of cherished principles. While O'Leary 
believed and said that American ideals should prevail in Ireland, 
he also contended with all the ability and vigor with which 
Providence endowed him that American principles of liberty 
should continue to prevail in the United States. True, he 
believed and said that British power and influence should depart 
from Ireland, but more strenuously did he strive with courage 
and persistency to drive British power and influence from the 
United States. 

Alike with eloquence of tongue and pen, with vitriolic 
denunciation, and scathing satire; with keen, incisive wit, and 
sometimes powerful verse, he essayed to counteract the British 
propaganda. Fearlessly, he flashed the light of truth upon 
the hosts who, intrenched behind the ramparts of financial, 
corporate, and political power, sought to undermine the 
foundations of the temple which Washington had laid. Wielding 
a fulcrum, the might of which was unknown to Archimedes, 



Preface vii 

they sought to exercise the lever of a strategically disposed 
press in order to control public opinion, or at least tO' blind 
public intelligence. Against the cohorts of error, prejudice, 
and malice, against the phalanxes of greed, corruption and 
treachery, O'Leary battled. Never faltering, scarce pausing 
to count his followers or to weigh the moral and material 
worth of their assistance, because the need was dire, he carried 
the fight to those who were, he was convinced, the enemies 
of America at their most vulnerable points. He struck and 
struck repeatedly, vigorously, forcefully, and with telling 
results. His blows told. More than once he disarranged their 
plans and threw their ranks into confusion. Here was an 
antagonist who compelled their respect but to an exactly 
corresponding degree stirred their wrath and resentment. 
Shafts of malice the myrmidons of the hireling press launched 
against him. They sought to assail his character. They cried 
"German gold." They published weird, fantastic tales of 
fabulous sums employed to bribe him. Just as every lie, 
however atrocious, bears some relation to the truth, so every 
calumny, whether outrageous in its malice or ridiculous in its 
improbability, contained in itself a tribute of esteem, a measure 
of flattering appraisement from a malevolent foe. They styled 
him a "professional Irishman," "Irish agitator," "Anti-British 
agitator," "Pro-German," although conscious all the while of 
the purity of his devotion to the principles he espoused. They 
did this to discount the intrinsic merit of his valiant fight for 
true and unadulterated Americanism, yet he gloried in their 
wrath and derived satisfaction from their discomfiture and 
fear. 

O'Leary's fight failed. Appropriately, Good Friday, 1917, 
marked the height of his almost superhuman effort. There 
have been other calvaries in human history, supreme moments 
in religion and in nationality, in the lives of all individuals, 
when the sun disappears as if forever, the earth is shrouded in 
gloom, and rocks are cleft in twain and hearts break from very 
anguish. Religion teaches and human experience shows that 
the R^urr^ction is the necessary sequence to the real Calvary, 



viii Preface 

just as in nature — the day follows the night. We are now 
approaching the dawn. We went to war but O'Leary still 
showed the strong, vibrant character of his Americanism. 
He supported his country's bond issues to the limit of his 
ability and beyond. He contributed to the American Red Cross. 
He wrote sympathetically of the American soldiers. He did 
not oppose the Conscription Act, holding it to be the duty of 
every American to be ready to fight and, if need be, to die for 
his country. Scores of young men, their patriotism confirmed 
by the fire of his eloquence, enlisted in Army and Navy. He 
proved this by copious evidence at his trial. Later, when the 
tempting offer was made him of a New York Mayoralty 
nomination on an anti-draft platform, he refused the tender, 
declining to surrender his convictions, favoring the principle 
of universal military service, in order to reap political prestige. 

He drew the line on loans to foreign powers by the Secretary 
of the Treasury, holding them to be without warrant of 
Constitutional sanction, pointing out that the only lawful 
method by which such loans could be made was by treaty, by 
and with the advice and consent of the Senate. He also warned 
that the loans might never be repaid and suggested purchase 
of British territory on the American Continent, as the wisest 
course to pursue if England really needed the money, basing 
this idea on Jefiferson's purchase of the Louisiana territory 
from France. 

O'Leary's enemies, whom he believed were the enemies of 
his country, had not forgotten nor forgiven the splendid fight 
which had retarded their victory and frustrated their plans. 
Deeper than their wrath at his past agitation was their concern 
at the prospect of his future activities. They had vision enough 
to foresee that their very victory would in time to come be a 
resistless weapon in O'Leary's hands. Craven fear of his 
vindication on this side of the Atlantic matched the dire need 
of the British ministry to stem the rising tide of Sinn Fein in 
Ireland. The details of the plot were hatched, a drug fiend 
in the appropriate masque of a German spy, a perjured witness 
or two, and a few other actors, carefully coached in their lines, 



Preface ix 

and the plot, crude withal, and unworthy of the real dramatic 
qualities of its authors, was complete. The stage was set and 
the curtain was lifted on the tableau to the gaze of two 
continents by the combined power of seventy thousand printing 
presses. Only action was needed to vitalize the drama. Within 
twenty-four hours O'Leary and sundry others had been 
indicted for a conspiracy to attempt treason in this country, 
while De Valera, Griffith, McNeil and five hundred Irish 
patriots, the backbone of the Sinn Fein (We Ourselves) 
movement, were languishing in English or Irish jails, without 
indictment or other charge save Lloyd George's statement in 
the House of Commons that the Ministry had received 
information from "a friendly Government" of an Irish-German 
plot. With the gallows in the background on this side and 
firing squads on the other, began the second act of the great 
international drama, which was to crush Irish liberty in Ireland 
and championship of it in America, and to make disloyal 
forever the memories of 1776 and odious the advocacy of the 
principles of the Fathers of the Republic. 

This book tells the story; it explains the collapse of the 
conspiracy on the Government's own presentation. Readers 
will remember how, even before O'Leary began his defense 
in American Courts the British Ministry began to free the 
Irish leaders who were to share in O'Leary's conviction and 
punishment. Every American should read these chapters. 
They have not read the true story because the newspapers, as 
well as the Department of Justice, have been interested in 
suppressing facts and reports which would militate against 
them. Americans should read it because the conspiracy against 
O'Leary was a conspiracy against human rights, their rights 
and their liberties, and when they have read it they will agree 
that not Jeremiah A. O'Leary but the Department of Justice 
and the Administration itself were on trial, and that his 
vindication was a verdict of condemnation of those who 
persecuted him. O'Leary now stands vindicated of trumped 
up charges of treason, disloyalty, and conspiracy to resist the 
draft, of an attempt to create mutiny and of every other charge 



X Preface 

which could taint his character as a man or his patriotism as 
a citizen — vindicated in a Federal Court by an American Jury. 

The hurrying tread of events, now fast marching to their 
climax must soon rouse from slothful inactivity the great masses 
of patriotic Americans. Their imagination dormant under 
the soporific influence of a mercenary and controlled press ; their 
vision obscured by the clouds of malevolent propaganda, they 
have not perceived the rocks toward which their loved Ship of 
State has been drifting. Proudly conscious of the nobility of 
the great pilots who have grasped that wheel in the past, 
Washington, Jefiferson, Jackson, Lincoln and others of perhaps 
lesser fame but of equally powerful devotion, they have been 
unable to conceive of such a thing as treachery in the pilot- 
house. The covenant fabricated in the secret recesses of the 
Quai D'Orsay places alien helmsmen in charge of this, our 
craft, and takes the wheel of the Ship of State from true 
American hands. We are launched upon new seas, never 
ventured upon by our great helmsmen of the past, and 
uncharted for us today except by the sinister cunning, imperial 
ambitions of historic enemies and present restive and envious 
kinsmen. Every patriot in the crew, from cabin to forecastle, 
every officer faithful to his oath, and every seaman devoted to 
his allegiance, must strive to bring Longfellow's allegorical 
"Ship of State" back to its moorings. This is a task fit to test 
the temper, the fibre, the patriotism of every true American. 

Leadership tried and true, the possession of a courage which 
has never been found wanting is needed for the herculean task 
which confronts Americans of today, namely that of restoring 
the institutions established by the Fathers, of reviving the 
principles of the immortal Washington; in a word, of saving 
this, our beloved country, and all its institutions from the gulf 
which awaits if the United States is to become a guarantor of 
European equilibrium. This restoration has always been 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary's ambition. The struggle over the League 
of Nations will determine whether it will be the ambition of a 
hundred millions of the American people. 

Joseph W. Gavan. 



CONTENTS 

Part I. 

PAGE 

I. Early Life 1 

II. The American Truth Society 13 

III. The Society in Action . . . : 28 

IV. The National Campaign of 1916 38 

V. The O'Leary-Wilson Telegrams 45 

VI. Conception of Americanism 51 

VII. "America First" 68 

VIII. Political Opponents Strike 73 

IX. Testifies at Brother's Trial 80 

X. A Character Sketch 88 

Part II. 

I. I Leave for the West 99 

II. Impressions on the Journey 104 

xi 



xii Contents 

PAGE 

III. In Search of a Habitation 109 

IV. Life on a Chicken Farm 115 

V. Housecleaning 122 

VI. Laments Decay of Virile Americanism 125 

VII. The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table 129 

VIII. Clouds Begin to Gather ^ 133 

IX. A Stranger Among His Own 144 

X. Betrayed and Arrested 149 

XL Homeward Bound 155 

XII. In New York Again 159 

XIII. Stone Walls Do Not a Prison. Make 166 

XIV. At John's Trial 172 

XV. Sunday in the Tombs 176 

XVI. John's Case Breaks Down 180 

XVII. Reflections in the Tombs 183 

XVIII. Celebrates Birthday in Jail 190 

XIX. The Slacker Raid 194 

XX. Evils of System in Tombs 202 

XXI. In the Prison Ward at Bellevue 206 



Contents xiii 

PAGE 

XXII. Happy Christmas in Hospital 219 

XXIII. Trial Again Delayed 224 



Part III. 

I. On Trial at Last 237 

II. Tables Turned on Prosecution 245 

III. Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 253 

IV. Attempted Subornation of Perjury 277 

V. Mme. Gonzales Admits Perjury 281 

VI. Mme. Victorica Shocks Jurors 294 

VII. A Discredited Chief of Police 300 

VIII. Felix M. Brecher Breaks Down 318 

IX. Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 322 

X. The Defense Opens 358 

XL A Grave Official Scandal 364 

XII. Monsignor Power Defends the Irish 372 

XIII. Defendant's Father a Witness 381 

XIV. Sons of Erin and the Draft 395 

XV. Irish Soldiers Spurn British Uniforms 399 



xiv Contents 

PAGE 

XVI. Sensations in Court 408 

XVII. Bazaar Workers Contradict Gonzales 415 

XVIII. Cartoon an Amusing Fiasco 420 

XIX. Stephen Johnson Scores Heavily 427 

XX. Defendant on the Stand 439 

XXI. Conclusion of the Trial ,. .452 

XXII. Free at Last .469 

XXIII. Enormous Public Reception 473 

XXIV. More Persecution 482 

Appendix 

The Ridder Letter 485 

Letter Demanding Race Convention 490 

The Indictments 500 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Jeremiah A. O'Leary Frontispiece 

Facing page 

Major Michael A. Kelly xvii 

Jeremiah A. O'Leary's Birthplace 1 

Jeremiah A. O'Leary at the age of thirteen years 4 

At the age of twenty-four years 10 

As an Officer of the "69th Regiment" 13 

John J. O'Leary 80 

Stephen Whalen O'Leary 105 

The Ranch at Sara 110 

Mrs. Jeremiah A. O'Leary 115 

Poster Circulated by the Government 149 

The Tombs 161 

The Cell in the Tombs 163 

Keeper Felix McCarron 207 

Robert Emmet, Gertrude and Gerald O'Leary 221 

John Gill 224 

Willard J. Robinson 227 

Colonel Thomas B. Felder 238 

Miss Margaret Sullivan 297 

Lieutenant Arthur T. O'Leary 358 

Mr. Daniel O'Leary, his father 381 

Mrs. Daniel O'Leary, his mother 418 

On the Witness Stand 439 

Eamonn De Valera 480 

XV 




Major Michael A. Kelly, D. S. C, Chevalier of the Legion of 
Honor of France and Winner of the Croix de Guerre, of the 
165th U. S. Infantry (formerly the 69th New York Regiment). 



PART I. 

Biographical Sketch 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary 

By 

Major Michael A. Kelly 

Distinguished Service Cross, Clievalier of the Legion of Honor of France, 

and Winner of tlie Croix de Guerre 

Late of the 165th U. S. Infantry, A. B. P. 

(The 69th New Yorlt Regiment) 




The Old Homestead on Warren Street, Glens Falls, N. Y., Where 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary Was Born. 



I. 

EARLY LIFE. 

Jeremiah A. O'Leary was born on July 24th, 1881, at Glens 
Falls, in the State of New York. His birthplace is a beautiful 
little city, nestling in the foothills of the Adirondack Montains, 
nine miles from Lake George, one of the famed picture-spots 
of America. It derives its name from a very pretty water-fall 
in the Hudson River about two hundred miles north of its 
mouth. The city was founded during Colonial days in the 
midst of the stirring period of the French and Indian Wars. 
A little later it was the scene of some of the most momentous 
events connected with the American Revolution. The battle 
of Saratoga was fought in the vicinity, — in fact but a few 
miles from the O'Leary homestead. A short distance to the 
northeast occurred the Battle of Bennington, where Mollie 
Stark won enduring fame and the British redcoats were driven 
back; to the north lay Forts George and Ticonderoga, made 
famous by the victory of Montcalm over Wolfe and by the 
thrilling exploit of Ethan Allen and his "Green Mountain 
Boys," which gave early life and inspiration to the cause of 
the patriots, by the speedy capture of Fort Ticonderoga, the 
most important British fort south of Quebec and the Gibraltar 
of America in strength of strategic position as well as the 
northern British base of operations against the Revolutionists. 

Jeremiah's father, Daniel O'Leary, was also born in Glens 
Falls, while his mother was a native of County Kerry, Ireland. 
She migrated to America with her parents at a tender age. 
Jeremiah was the second of a family of seven children. He 
spent the spare hours of his early youth in reading the history 
of his native land and not only acquired a vast wealth of 
information respecting the Revolution and its leaders and the 
early history of the Republic, but more important even than 

1 



2 My Political Trial and Experiences 

his knowledge of facts and dates and places, was the avidity 
with which he absorbed eagerly the spirit which animated all 
America in these eventful times. His grandfather, John 
O'Leary, a native of Buttevant, County Cork, Ireland, spent 
many hours of the latter years of his good old age narrating to 
his grandchildren, with whom he lived, many anecdotes relating 
to American and Irish history. He had a remarkable memory 
and would devote hours telHng the younger O'Learys, grouped 
around his easy chair, thrilling stories of the Indians, of the 
struggles of the early immigrants, the hardships of the early 
Irish settlers, of the battles fought in the vicinity of their own 
birth place, of the wrongs inflicted upon Ireland by England, 
of the scattering and the suffering of his own family in the early 
part of the nineteenth century, and generally of the contribu- 
tions made by the Irish in America to the creation, development 
and growth of the American Republic. The subject of this 
sketch was only twelve years old when his grandfather died 
at the age of eighty-seven, but the grandfather had already 
implanted in the grandson the germ of that devotion to Amer- 
ican ideals, which later was to plunge him with all his energies 
and talents into the vortex of America's fiercest struggle for 
the preservation of its historic policies. 

When Jeremiah was thirteen years of age, his father, Daniel 
O'Leary, was appointed by Gov. Levi P. Morton head of the 
Factory Department of the State of New York, and the O'Leary 
family in consequence removed from Glens Falls to Albany, 
the Capital City of New York State. Here for six years Jere- 
miah found much to interest and inspire him in the splendid 
collection of war relics preserved in the great Capitol building. 
He was also afforded an opportunity for more extensive reading 
by the comprehensive library which is one of the features of 
the building. At the age of eighteen he decided to study law 
and tliree years later, upon attaining his majority, was admitted 
to the Bar. Two months later found him in New York City, 
practically a stranger in the big metropolis, entering upon the 
practice of his profession without seeking assistance or patron- 
age from financiers or politicians — the method usually followed 



Early Life 3 

by the young lawyer eager to adopt the surest means of profes- 
sional success. Following his talents he began to specialize in 
trial work and five years later found him a busy attorney and 
frequently in court as counsel in civil causes. He never lost 
a jury case until 1911, when after several years of the most 
intense professional effort his strength began to waver under 
the severe strain with the result that he lost three cases in 
succession. When this occurred he took a complete rest. 

Recovering quickly, he again took up his legal work and 
from 1912 to 1914 we find him one of the most aggressive and 
successful trial lawyers at the New York Bar. He was the 
type of lawyer who went to Court thoroughly prepared, the 
master of his case. He usually won his cases by cross-ex- 
amination and his final appeal to the jury. When the European 
War broke out he had built up a lucrative practice, earning a 
large income for a lawyer scarcely thirty-three years of age. 
In 1909, O'Leary was married to Gertrude E. Whalen, the 
daughter of Michael H. Whalen of New York City, a prominent 
Civil War Veteran and successful business man. His first son, 
born in 1911, he called Robert Emmet, and his next boy, Gerald. 
In all he has had four children, a girl, Gertrude, and Stephen 
Whalen, named after his uncle. Lieutenant H. Stevenson 
Whalen, who died an officer of the 69th Regiment at the Mex- 
ican Border just before the outbreak of the European War. 

When twenty-four years of age, Jeremiah joined the Sixty- 
ninth Regiment. He refused a Commission, preferring to 
serve as a private in the ranks, where, as he frequently 
remarked, he "could be among the men." Eighteen months 
later however, he consented to become Second Lieutenant in 
Company B with which he remained until he resigned from the 
Regiment in 1910, after a service of almost six years. While 
in the Sixty-Ninth, he organized a Regimental Athletic Associa- 
tion and athletic teams and devoted himself to work calculated 
to build up the Regiment and improve the morale of the men. 
He became president of the Regimental Athletic Association, 
in which office he received all the assistance the writer, its 
secretary could give him. He was always popular among the 



4 My Political Trial and Experiences 

men and active in their behalf, devoted to their comfort and 
interests, and aided by myself and other young officers, he 
succeeded in strengthening the organization greatly when it 
was threatened with disorganization by factional fights. As a 
consequence of such work under the command of Colonel 
Louis D. Conley, the Sixty-Ninth became a strong and compact 
body and fit for any service in 1916 when it was ordered to the 
Mexican border, and there trained for its later distinguished 
service in France. 

An incident occurred shortly before O'Leary's resignation 
from the Sixty-Ninth, which throws a flood of light on his 
character. The Regiment, which has such a splendid war 
record, was organized during the days of the young Ireland 
Movement, when patriots such as Thomas Francis Meagher and 
John Mitchell were cast into prison by British courts for 
political offenses in Ireland. At that time American sympathy 
for Ireland ran high, and so pronounced was it, that the Sixty- 
Ninth Infantry was formed as a distinctively Irish Regiment 
for the express purpose of aiding in the liberation of Ireland 
and as such was admitted as a part of the National Guard of 
New York State. The finest types of young Irish-Americans 
joined it and drilled assiduously in the ardent hope that by 
becoming proficient in military tactics they might be better 
equipped to strike a blow for Ireland. This spirit of these 
days, so exotic to American Tories now was further evidenced 
by the great public reception which John Mitchel, grandfather 
of John Purroy Mitchel, late Mayor of New York, received 
in 1854 upon his arrival at New York following his escape 
from the British Convict settlement in Van Dieman's Land. 
Receptions were tendered him at the City Halls of New York 
and Brooklyn, at which the Mayors of the respective cities 
attended, while prominent public men and noted newspaper 
men like Horace Greeley, then owner and editor of the 
"Tribune," were conspicuous in paying their respects to the 
man who was stigmatized as a felon by British law merely 
because he loved human liberty. These incidents are in sharp 
contrast to the public opinion of our day, which in 1917 found., 




Jeremiah A. O'Leary at the Age of Thirteen Years. 



Early Life 5 

the United States actually fighting with England and persecut- 
ing men like Jeremiah A. O'Leary for opinions which a few 
short years before were the badge of purest patriotism and the 
sign manual of unadulterated Americanism. 

From the days of its organization down to the present 
the Sixty-Ninth Regiment has always been distinctively Irish 
and is recognized as such by public opinion and by public 
officials. On each St. Patrick's Day the Regiment attends 
Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral, and in the afternoon marches 
proudly up Fifth Avenue at the head of the St. Patrick's Day 
Parade. When Lieutenant Colonel John Duncan Emmet re- 
signed from the Regiment in 1901, various individuals, notably 
H. H. Rogers, Jr., son of the President of the Standard Oil 
Corporation, sought his place. Mr. Rogers, rich and powerful, 
with no Irish blood, undertook to use his wealth and influence 
and actually succeeded in securing the support of a large 
number of officers in the Regiment. O'Leary, anxious to 
preserve the Regiment's Irish traditions, and affronted at the 
idea of an outsider becoming its Colonel, organized with my 
assistance and co-operation, the young officers into a solid unit 
against Rogers. We finally succeeded in bringing about the 
selection of Louis D. Conley, a man of Irish blood, who com- 
manded the Regiment until 1916. 

O'Leary's active interest in Irish organizations began about 
the time he joined the Sixty-Ninth. While a member of the 
Regiment, he never lost an opportunity at smokers and public 
affairs to remind the men of its traditions, or to portray the 
Regiment as a constant reminder of what America owes to 
Ireland and what the American of Irish blood owes to America. 
In speeches to the men he frequently referred to the fact that 
when the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, visited New 
York in 1861, Col. Corcoran, then Commander of the Regi- 
ment, refused to order it to parade in the Prince's honor, 
although instructed to do so by his Commander-in-Chief, for 
which disobedience he was placed under arrest. He also re- 
lated how the charges were withdrawn a short time later so 
that the Colonel might lead the Regiment to the front at the 



6 My Political Trial and Experiences 

outbreak of the Civil War. He narrated frequently how 
Thomas Francis Meagher, later Commander of Meagher's 
famous Irish Brigade, the fighters par excellence of the Union 
Army during the Civil War, of which the Sixty-Ninth was 
a part, had been tried for treason in Ireland and sentenced 
to death, how his sentence was subsequently commuted to 
imprisonment in the penal colony at Van Dieman's Land, how 
he escaped, came to America to organize the Irish Brigade 
which won for the Irish in America imperishable glory 
upon the battlefields of the Civil War, notably at Marye's 
Heights, Fredericksburg — sometimes called the Balaklava of 
America. 

The first Irish organization Jeremiah O'Leary joined was 
the Gaelic League. His entrance into this organization was 
no mere accident but a result of his convictions. He had 
read an address delivered by Dr. Douglas Hyde, appealing 
for the preservation of the Irish language and was so im- 
pressed by it that he immediately joined the Harlem Gaelic 
Society established in connection with All Saints' Church, 
New York, then as now under the guidance of Mgr. James 
W. Power, one of the staunchest friends of Ireland in this 
country. He studied Irish faithfully and at the end of one 
year became president of the Society, devoting himself earn- 
estly to the promotion of the Gaelic revival until he retired 
in 1910. Included in its agenda were Irish language, liter- 
ature, history, music and dancing. He was a member of the 
Executive Committee of the Gaelic League of the State of 
New York and served as a member of the Reception Com- 
mittee which received Dr. Douglas Hyde at a great public 
meeting at Carnegie Hall on his visit to America. With 
his associates he also organized the Cumann Ceoil, a singing 
society, and aided in the organization of the Cumann na 
Rinnce, a dancing society of which his brother, John, was 
president and chief instructor. In this connection he aided 
materially in securing recognition by the Board of Education 
of Irish figure dancing, being one of the most excellent meth- 
ods of developing agility and grace in children, with the 



Early Life 7 

result that it became a part of the physical culture curriculum 
in the Public Schools of New York City. 

A few years after Mr. O'Leary joined the Gaelic League, 
he assisted in the establishment of the first Sinn Fein Society 
in America. Its presidency was tendered him, and while he 
declined the honor, he nevertheless took a very active part 
in the work and delivered a number of addresses before the 
Society on the possibilities of the Sinn Fein policy. He was 
an early subscriber to "Sinn Fein," the periodical established 
by Arthur Griffith and read all the splendid literature which 
this movement has inspired. 

O'Leary's early grasp of Sinn Fein policy as a practical 
political policy serves as an excellent illustration of his vision. 
His ability to appreciate and understand the power of political 
ideas can be seen by the following peroration of an address 
delivered by him before the Brooklyn Gaelic Society in Im- 
perial Hall, Brooklyn, March 17th, 1909, on the "Failure of 
Parliamentary Agitation." Speaking at that time, he said: — 

"The Sinn Fein idea and the Gaelic Language movement 
as organized forces are new to Ireland. They are beginning 
at' the bottom instead of the top. They teach the child the 
rudiments of nationality. They educate him to believe in 
the things of his own country instead of those of his country's 
oppressor, and to the adult they say, 'Look to yourself and 
your own country for the accomplishment of your hopes,' 
The day of physical force is not yet over, but an intelligent 
physical force is the power of today and will be the power 
of the future. In one generation education will give to Ireland 
what centuries have failed to yield. There can be no duplicity 
or deception with an educated people. These principles, if 
properly and intelligently pursued, will build up the Irish 
nation, by taking the unit of the nation, the individual, and 
after shaping and cementing each in one great national struc- 
ture, placing unit upon unit, seasoning and testing every part, 
taking care that each unit fits the niche into which it is placed, 
shall rear the national structure aloft gradually and symmetri- 
cally into one harmonious whole with every unit performing 



8 My Political Trial and Experiences 

its own separate function, yet constituting with one another 
one great national bulwark, solid, sturdy, irresistible and in- 
destructible." 

His interest in the Sinn Fein movement led to a very inter- 
esting incident which I deem worthy of narration in view 
of later developments. Diarmuid Lynch, later tried and 
condemned to death by a military tribunal during the Irish 
Revolution of 1916, was at one time President of the Gaelic 
League of the State of New York. Mr. Lynch's political 
sympathies were in 1908 given to the Home Rule policy of 
John Redmond and the United Irish League, while O'Leary, 
viewing the Irish question from the standpoint of pure Ameri- 
canism, and guided by the examples of his own country, 
cherished the conviction that Ireland by right and by nature 
should be free. The two men, strongly differing on national 
policies, were in accord as to the necessity of the Gaelic 
renaissance. 

Mr, O'Leary and his friends, anxious to advance the Sinn 
Fein idea, offered a resolution endorsing Sinn Fein principles 
at the convention of the Gaelic League, held in St. Stephen's 
Hall, New York, in 1908. Mr. Lynch, presiding, refused to 
receive the resolution and a warm and earnest discussion was 
the result. Lynch contended that Sinn Fein was political 
and would disrupt the League. O'Leary argued it was eco- 
nomic and the inevitable corollary to the League's program 
for the revival of Irish nationality. On the test vote. Lynch 
was sustained by a narrow majority. Later, Lynch went to 
Ireland, where he became an ardent Sinn Feiner and is today 
a member of Dail Eireann, having been elected from a con- 
stituency in Cork, Ireland. O'Leary's early advocacy of the 
principle and policy which was later to remold the national 
character of the Irish people and to forge anew their national 
destiny, was evidence that despite his youth he possessed a 
real grasp of deep political questions in their remotest bearings, 
and in particular an insight into the eternal Irish question, 
which was remarkable inasmuch as he was not a native of 
Ireland, nor had he ever traveled through the Emerald Isle. 



Early Life 9 

An easy explanation of his convictions is found in his own 
simple statement: "I always approached the Irish Question 
from the American standpoint. The Declaration of Inde- 
pendence is the gospel of my Americanism. The American 
of Irish blood or of any other racial extraction who wishes 
for Ireland a lesser measure of liberty than that which America 
enjoys, is not in harmony with the spirit of real Americanism." 
During this period of his activities, O'Leary joined the Clan- 
na-Gael, a secret society devoted to the idea of an independent 
Ireland. The Clan-na-Gael is the lineal descendant of Irish 
Revolutionary movements dating back to the stirring days of 
1798, the movement which inspired Robert Emmet, who was 
himself executed after leading an abortive uprising in 1803. 
It has had in its membership some of the ablest and most 
prominent men of the Irish race in America. Its influence 
has always been nation-wide and for twenty-five years it was 
able, by open and above-board campaigns, to defeat every 
movement which had for its object an Anglo-American alliance. 
In 1897 it defeated the Olney-Pauncefote Treaty, misnamed 
a treaty of arbitration, but in reality a skillfully contrived 
entering wedge into America's traditional isolation in world 
affairs and an insidious blow at Washington's time-honored 
admonition against European entanglements and wars. The 
Olney-Pauncefote Treaty was the "League of Nations" of 
its day. Later, during the Presidential Administration of 
Theodore Roosevelt, the influence of the Clan-na-Gael suc- 
ceeded in denaturing another set of arbitration treaties which 
had been astutely drafted by the cunning hand of John Hay. 
Subsequently during the Administration of William H. Taft, 
it once more retarded England's fond hope of an alliance or 
"League" with the United States, which, as described by 
Andrew Carnegie, one of the most active propagandists in 
behalf of this treaty, was to be "effective both in peace and 
war." In all this work O'Leary took a deep interest and an 
active part. In 1897, at the age of sixteen, he wrote letters 
of protest to newspapers and read eagerly on the subject, 
while in 1907, during Roosevelt's Administration, he threw 



10 My Political Trial and Experiences 

himself actively into the fight, made public speeches, organized 
meetings and wrote letters and articles discussing the question, 
first from the viewpoint of its constitutionality, about which 
there has always been grave doubt, and secondly, as a viola- 
tion of Washington's warnings and American tradition. A 
series of letters written by him under the nom de plume "Con- 
stitution," to the New York Sun, in which he took to task a 
vigorous proponent of the treaties in 1911, serve to illustrate 
the deep study which he had made of the subject, and the ear- 
nest and convincing style in which he argued it. The letters 
attracted considerable attention both in New York and Wash- 
ington and his arguments were largely those which later pre- 
vailed in the Senate discussions against the adoption of the 
treaties. 

As a result of the publication of these letters, Mr. O'Leary 
began an acquaintanceship with Major John Bigelow, the son 
of John Bigelow, the devoted friend and associate of Lincoln. 
Major Bigelow, being then at Highland Falls, New York, 
read the letters in the Sun, and was so impressed that he 
called at the Sun office and sought to learn the identity of the 
writer. Mr. O'Leary was in his office one day, when a member 
of the Sun stafif called him on the telephone and said, "Major 
Bigelow is here and wants to learn your identity. Have you 
any objection to our telling him your name?" Mr. O'Leary 
promptly replied in the negative. A few minutes later. Major 
Bigelow called upon him and seeing a comparatively young 
man, evidenced his surprise, but said laughingly, "Are you 
'Constitution'?" O'Leary answered, "Yes, in the Sun." 
"Well," remarked the Major, "I must say that I am sur- 
prised to find 'Constitution' such a young man. I thought 
at least he might have a beard." The Major then congrat- 
ulated him upon his able letters, invited him to dine, and a 
friendship was begun which did not end until the Major's 
death. 

Mr. O'Leary's interest in international questions developed 
largely through his deep study of American history and his 
intimate acquaintance with the lives and views of America's 




Jeremiah A. O'Leary at the Age of Twenty-four Years. 



Early Life 11 

greatest men, iparticularly Washington, Jefferson, Hamilton, 
Madison, Jackson, Monroe and Lincoln. His interest in Ireland 
as well as his association with Irish activities convinced him 
that Irish organizations in defending American traditions 
against British intrigue, had assumed a burden which properly 
belonged not to them alone, but to all Americans. He took 
very seriously the carping criticism hurled at Irish organiza- 
tions, chiefly by the press, which contended that they were 
actuated by foreign prejudices, and resolved to create an or- 
ganization which would be American in all its limitations, a 
society which would devote its energies to fostering the ideals 
of "76" and the principles of the men which that great period 
of American history produced. He had made an intensive 
study of the press and of the influences which control it. He 
delved deep into the lives, activities and associations of the 
Americans and Englishmen who had been and were active in 
promoting the Anglo-American alliance, and in January, 1912, 
we find him organizing the American Truth Society, a storm 
center in the country almost from the time its establishment 
was announced. 

He sought earnestly to interest Americans of Anglo-Saxon 
lineage in the Society. He wrote a brochure entitled "The 
Plan and Scope of the American Truth Society," and per- 
sonally paid for its printing and free circulation. In this 
pamphlet he appealed to men of Anglo-Saxon ancestry to join 
with Americans of other races in upholding the traditions of 
the past. He pointed out that Washington was of British ex- 
traction and pleaded with men of Washington's race to rally 
to the ideals of the Father of his Country, proclaiming him a 
greater man than any living British or American statesman. 
He exposed the object of the British propaganda. He did 
not succeed in attracting many of those to whom this appeal 
was directed, but he was not discouraged. He incorporated 
the Society, organized a Board of Directors and decided upon 
a campaign of Americanism by letter-writing and pamphlet- 
eering as a means of interesting the people in its aims and 
programme. 



12 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Men of O'Leary's genius, courage, manliness, patriotism, 
energy, sincerity, initiative and deadly enmity to everything 
dishonorable — men of "sovereign parts," whose personal lives 
are of ascetic cleanliness — are rare these days, and it will be 
a pleasant memory in after years to be able to say that one 
enjoyed the friendship and was honored with the confidence 
of Jeremiah O'Leary. 




Jeremiah A. O'Leary as an Officer in the 69th Regiment. 



n 

THE AMERICAN TRUTH SOCIETY 

The attitude of the American Truth Society toward prob- 
lems of vital importance to the United States and the position 
of its founder, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, were outlined in a 
brochure entitled "The Plan and Scope of the American Truth 
Society," which, in part read: 

"The American people, as represented by the press and 
other institutions have been dead to the idealism of Washing-- 
ton, Jefiferson and Lincoln for the past twenty-five years. When 
Lincoln was shot, the last great American statesman passed 
away. We have true American statesmen today, but they 
are assassinated by the press whenever they assert themselves. 
Our public men who would break the shackles of such tyranny 
are brow-beaten into silence. New York, Boston, Philadelphia, 
Washington and even Chicago to a less extent as well as other 
cities are hotbeds of aristocrats who prefer the glitter of Brit- 
ish royalty to the plain texture of American democracy. In 
the rural parts of the country, American idealism is stronger 
and more healthy, but in our cities 'where wealth accumulates, 
men decay.' These conditions are expressed and attacked by 
the American Truth Society in this pamphlet. We don't want 
the reader to approach the facts with a mind of adamant, 
made so perhaps by the baneful influences we are aiming at. 
The issues involved are simply — Rhodes, Carnegie and Hal- 
dane versus Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln, or we might 
say British imperialism versus American idealism. True 
Americans of English descent should prefer the idealism of 
Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln. If the American Truth 
Society were anti-British or anti-Anglo-Saxon, it would never 
have selected these men who have shed so much glory on the 
forbears who gave them to us. Washington, Jefferson and 
Lincoln were all anti-British, and only to the extent of these 

13 



14 My Political Trial and Experiences 

great men is the American Truth Society anti-British, be- 
cause in the United States we have a nation whose idealism is 
far superior to that which has produced the financial institu- 
tion that has been called the British Empire. The American 
Truth Society would prefer to find American citizens with 
so-called Anglo-Saxon tendencies worshipping at the shrine 
of Washington and his distinguished fellow statesmen, than 
inclining to the idealism which has produced the opportunists 
Asquith, George or Carson. Remember, that these are the 
United States and that other bloods than British make up our 
people. There is much in the English that is needful, but 
there is much in the idealism of other races that is needful, too. 
Shall we reject the best which the Teuton and Celt can give 
us? Shall we propagate a doctrine which shall dwarf their 
strength? Is it not a better policy to develop their strength 
by welcoming them into the melting pot as a part of the Ameri- 
can people, devoted to the principle 'all men are created 
equal?' The American Truth Society is striving to preserve 
the American ideal which is founded upon love, which is 
devoted to all races, not one race, and which believes that all 
statesmanship which tends to peace on earth must rest upon 
a foundation of truth and justice, truth first, then, justice, 
after which peace will inevitably follow. 

"In 1776 our country, then' comprising thirteen colonies in 
the throes of a long and bloody war, declared its absolute in- 
dependence from Great Britain. The present constitution was 
adopted September 17, 1787, and through the organism of that 
document the nation has grown strong, prosperous and happy. 
Next to the Declaration of Independence, Washington's Fare- 
well Address is the most important national document. It 
has been the guide to our nation in its foreign affairs. It has 
been followed by every statesman and political party down 
to recent times. The effect of Washington's policy has been 
to keep the nation free from foreign wars and entanglements. 
This policy of national concentration has kept the minds of 
the people riveted on internal affairs. It has been our constant 
guarantee of peace; the secret of our unparalleled prosperity. 



The American Truth Society 15 

It has attracted to our shores the best brains, brawn and energy 
of the nations of the world. 

"At the close of the American Revolution the population 
of the new Republic was about three millions, over one-third 
of which was Teutonic and Celtic in origin. After peace was 
established the nation grew apace, so that in 1820 by immi- 
gration (largely Irish and German) and natural increase, the 
population leaped to nine millions. Today the nation is one 
hundred millions, including about ten million negroes. This 
growth has been due to immigration more than to any other 
factor. Since 1820 at least thirty million human souls have 
entered these shores seeking life, liberty and happiness under 
our escutcheon of equality and democracy. These thirty 
millions were made up of about one-sixth German, one-seventh 
Irish, one-eighth Austro-Hungarian, one-ninth Italian, one- 
tenth English, Scotch and Welsh, the balance being sub- 
divided amongst Russians, Swedes, Norwegians, French and 
others. 

"It must be clear from above facts that the United States 
is not a nation in a racial sense. A perusal of our history, or 
Declaration of Independence and our Constitution convinces 
one that the United States is a nation devoted to principles 
of equality and justice, and is not distinguished by either 
language, race or blood. It is therefore bound to all nations 
by ties of blood, and the genius of our statesmanship should 
direct the nation clear of all movements and policies which 
would tend to a consolidation with or absorption by any one 
nation lest we offend those of other bloods and races who are 
Americans equally with all, and unless we lose our identity 
as a nation. Such a consolidation would tend to tyranny be- 
cause it would change the aspect of the nation from a temple 
of justice for all to a habitat of grace for one race. England 
is a monarchy built upon the racial idea only ; the United States 
is a republic built upon principles of equality and justice — 
the democratic idea. The Declaration of Independence as the 
basis embodies three great principles: 1. All men are created 
equal. 2. All governments derive their just powers from the 



16 My Political Trial and Experiences 

consent of the governed. 3. Man has an inalienable right to 
life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. 

" 'Land of the Pilgrim's pride — of thee I sing' is the spirit 
of the Anglo-Saxon movement in the United States, Why 
not 'Land of the Spaniards' pride?' The Spaniards founded 
St. Augustine, the oldest city in the United States, over half 
a century before the Mayflower landed. Why not 'Land of 
the Frenchmen's pride'? Cartier and Chamberlain sailed up 
the St. Lawrence and founded Montreal and Quebec long 
before the Pilgrims were driven from England by religious 
persecution. And why not include the enterprise of the Swedes 
of Delaware, the Germans of Pennsylvania, the Dutch of New 
York and the Irish in every colony? This is the evil of the 
Anglo-Saxon propaganda. It is exclusive. Being exclusive 
it is un-American and unjust. 

"The discovery, history and development of the colonies were 
cosmopolitan in their aspect and not only justice but truth 
demand recognition of this fact. The Revolution was also 
cosmopolitan. In that fortunate war for mankind the German 
had his Von Steuben, the Dutchman his Schuyler, the French- 
man his Lafayette, the Irishman his 'Jack' Barry, the Pole 
his Kosciusko, and the Englishman his Washington ; as Ameri- 
cans we have them all, but as Anglo-Saxons we exclude them 
all but Washington. Why should we exclude them? Their 
names may be erased from history by jealous and aggressive 
Anglo-Saxon racial influences but their blood cannot be up- 
rooted from the soil. In the soil it must remain as the title 
of the kin of these men to the principles they established. In 
the soil it must remain as an inspiration to their descendants 
to keep their nation aloof from all policies and entanglements 
that must re-create the evils they destroyed. 

"Since the discovery, history and development of the United 
States were cosmopolitan in their aspect, and since the nation 
is devoted to principles of equality and justice, it cannot right- 
fully be referred to by any racial name. We may say our 
language is English. We may say our laws to a great extent 
were taken from England, and we may assume that language 



The American Truth Society 17 

and laws have left their impress upon our civilization for good 
or evil, but blood has greater influence upon a democratic 
State than language, which fact becomes apparent when we 
examine the tendencies of the various States of the Union 
where the language is the same, but where the laws and cus- 
toms differ widely. To say that New Mexico, Arizona or 
Louisiana are Anglo-Saxon States does not seem to be con- 
sistent with the history, blood, language or laws of those States, 
yet they are a part of the Union, but to call them American 
does suggest at once that they are a part of the whole nation. 
'Anglo-Saxon' suggests at once blood, race, but 'American,' 
as it has now become accepted in its meaning, imparts the idea 
at once of the people of the United States, not in a racial sense, 
but as a collection of individuals who form the great democ- 
racy of the Western Hemisphere. England may and should 
feel proud that this great Republic speaks her language; that 
it originally adopted the common law and her system of equity 
jurisprudence, but the ties of language and law did not prevent 
the Revolution; and the same systems of law did not bring 
the peoples together afterward. 

"John C. Calhoun, in a debate with John Randolph and 
Rufus Choate in the United States Senate, expressed the same 
thought as follows: 

" 'The gentleman is at a loss to account for what he calls 
our hatred for England, he asks — How can we hate the Country 
of Locke, of Newton, of Hampden and Chatham — a country 
having the same language and descended from a common 
ancestry ? The law of human affection is steady and uniform. 
If we had so much to attach us to that country powerful indeed 
must have been the cause which overpowered it. There was 
a cause strong enough — not that occult, courtly affection but 
continued and unprovoked insult and injury.' 

"England should abide the Revolution and not confuse 
gratitude with ownership nor jurisprudence with govern- 
mental control. If England has endowed us with her language, 
the other nations have endowed us with their people, more 
important to our welfare and future than language. We must 



18 My Political Trial and Experiences 

have land first — ^God provided that. An ItaHan discovered it 
and all peoples have developed it. We must have human 
beings second — all nations have provided them. We must have 
independence third — every race gave us that, and then for 
convenience we adopted English laws, or as much of them 
as were not inconsistent with our independence, and then also 
for convenience we agreed to speak English so that we could 
understand each other. Let us be grateful then to God and 
to Europe (not England alone) for our country, our people 
and our independence. England's claim upon the United States 
by way of language is weakened by the fact that the English 
language is largely made up of other languages, notably Latin 
and Greek, stocks which were not Anglo-Saxon in any sense. 
If we as Americans are asked to look back to England for our 
language, why stop at England? Why, if we are going back 
at all to analyze the body politic, do we do it only partially? 
Why not do it thoroughly ? But why go back at all ? Why not 
go forward? Progress is the trend of the human race. Back 
to England is retrogression. Forward with America is pro- 
gression. 'Anglo-Saxon' therefore means retrogression; 
'American' means progression. 

"With these few thoughts let us examine the Anglo-Saxon 
trend. In examining it let the reader note the passionate ut- 
terances of its propagandists. Much has been said of hyphe- 
nated Americanism. What kind of hyphenated Americanism 
is it which has excluded the word American from the term? 
'Anglo-Saxon' is a hyphenated word, yet it fails to express 
'American.' It is, therefore, an unpatriotic term. As has been 
pointed out, it is retrogressive and exclusive. Being retro- 
gressive it is degenerating, and being exclusive it is inconsistent 
with American equality and democracy and therefore undemo- 
cratic and prejudiced. Being prejudiced, both in conception 
and comprehension, it constitutes an injection into the people 
and affairs of the United States of the passions and prejudices 
of the English people and therefore the hatreds engendered 
by the present war and England's history. For instance — the 
Irish in America love Washington because Washington estab- 



The American Truth Society 19 

lished the American conception of liberty; but they despise 
Cromwell, whose idea of liberty was to despoil Ireland and 
drive the Irish into 'Hell or Connaught.' 'Anglo-Saxon' com- 
prehends both of these characters, but American excludes 
Cromwell and indicates Washington. Every American of 
Irish descent is perfectly justified in rejecting the term 'Anglo- 
Saxon' for this reason alone, and he can not be dubbed a 
hyphenated American for doing so. If there is any hyphena- 
tion at all it plagues the Anglo-Saxon idea. The word was 
devised to express the two nations as one — that is to say to 
hyphenate or connect them. 

"If the Irish have brought any prejudices across the At- 
lantic they are a tonic to the United States. The Irish do not 
hate Englishmen individually, but they fear — and justly so — 
the nefarious financial institution called the British Empire — 
a machine that grinds out its product by the sweat and blood 
of millions upon millions of human beings scattered over the 
earth — a machine which, as the American Truth Society will 
briefly establish, is now building its hopper upon the soil 
from which it was expelled one hundred and thirty-nine years 
ago. Jefferson's description of the British Government suffices : 

" 'We concur in considering the Government of England 
as totally without morality, insolent beyond bearing, inflated 
with vanity and ambition, aiming at the exclusive dominion 
of the seas, lost in corruption and deep-rooted hatred towards 
us, hostile to liberty wherever it endeavors to show its head, 
and the eternal disturber of the peace of the world.' — (Letter 
to Thos. Liper, June 12, 1815.) 

"Great Britain has never taken the United States seriously. 
She tried to conquer the United States three successive times, 
namely, in 1776, 1812 and 1861. In 1861, while England did 
not openly declare war, she carried on war against us by aid- 
ing the Confederates in the attempt to split the nation in twain. 
Her feelings toward us are best demonstrated by the following 
choice dissertation upon Abraham Lincoln, extracted from 
the London Morning Herald of Nov. 23, 1864, which reads: 

" 'We look and perceive a community numbering millions 



20 My Political Trial and Experiences 

in the North, without a man of genius, or of political probity 
wise or strong enough to counsel or to guide them aright. We 
see a military despotism never yet paralleled in Russia, in 
which the sceptre clinks the bayonet and the bayonet sharpens 
the sceptre, both being weapons of spoliation and terror to 
society. Half a million of soldiers ravage one of the most 
generous regions of the globe. Future generations — if such 
are reserved for America — are daily shackled with hopeless 
debt. New England, the Far West, and the best of the old Puri- 
tan States, are bleeding to exhaustion. And Bishop Simpson's 
missionary is Abraham Lincoln, the mouther of stump speeches, 
the buffoon of the battlefield (after the battle is over), the con- 
cocter of humorous State documents upon questions of awful 
import to mankind, the swindler of the American constituen- 
cies, and the Judas of his country. * * * ^ constitution 
violated, humanity outraged, Christianity scoffed at, war made 
fiendish — a thousand monuments of shame and ruin scattered 
over the land; and yet the maddened people seem proud of 
confiding that which Bishop Simpson proves their destiny to 
a desperado without one quality of demeanor or of intellect 
which would fit him to be more than a parish beadle. The only 
difference is that he can bluster, can corrupt, can select base 
instruments, can be mean and violent at the same time, can 
mock and jibe at misery, can ordain conscriptions, can play 
false with liberty, can scourge the press which made him what 
he has been, can gag the mouths of his fellow-citizens, and 
can be the hoot-owl of a direful conflict spreading its horrors 
from Canada to the Mexican Gulf, from the Atlantic to the 
Pacific Ocean.' 

"This rabid hatred of everything American is the key to 
the movement now on foot to eradicate the word 'American' 
and to substitute the word 'Anglo-Saxon.' It is interesting 
to contrast the feeling of 1864 and that of 1812. Gloating over 
the wanton destruction of Washington by General Ross and 
his British troops during the war of 1812, the London Times 
said: 

" 'Shall England, the mistress of the seas and dictator of 



The American Truth Society 21 

the maritime law of nations, be driven from her proud emi- 
nence by a piece of striped bunting, flying at the mast-head of 
a few fir-built frigates, manned by a handful of bastards and 
outlaws?'— Patton's History of U. S., 597-598. 

"England now claims to be the mother country of these 
'bastards and outlaws.' The 'Anglo-Saxon' propaganda is 
founded upon the claim that 'England is the mother country.' 
When we were patriotically American we were 'bastards' ; 
when we became necessary to her plans of world empire we 
became the 'offspring of the mother country.' 

"The American which England particularly despised was 
the so-called Yankee type, as appears from the following com- 
ment, also taken from the London Times, upon the seizure of 
Mason and Slidell, two Confederate agents, upon the British 
merchant ship Trent, by Capt. Wilkes, of the U. S. man-of- 
war San Jacinto, during the Civil War: 

" 'He (meaning Capt, Wilkes) is, unfortunately, but too 
faithful a type of people in whose foul mission he is engaged. 
He is an ideal Yankee. Swagger and ferocity, built upon a 
foundation of vulgarity and cowardice — these are his char- 
acteristics, and these are the most prominent marks by which 
his countrymen, generally speaking, are known all over the 
world. To bully the weak, to triumph over the helpless, to 
trample on every law of country and custom, wilfully to violate 
the most sacred interests of human nature — to defy as long as 
danger does not appear, and — as soon as real peril shows it- 
self, to sneak aside and run away — ^^these are the virtues of the 
race which presumes to announce itself as the leader of civi- 
lization and the prophet of human progress in these latter days. 
By Captain Wilkes let the Yankee breed be judged.' — Loss- 
ing's History of U. S., Vol. VI, 1540. 

"The brutal treatment of American officials, athletes and 
the American flag by British officials at the recent London 
Olympic games, and the defeat of the Reciprocity Treaty with 
Canada, which was passed by the American Congress at the 
solicitation of Canada, are ample evidence that the 'Yankee' 
prejudice is still rampant. 



22 My Political Trial and Experiences 

"It is not surprising, therefore, when we find the first will 
and testament of Cecil Rhodes, a Privy Councillor of Eng- 
land, dated September 19th, 1877, providing for trust funds 
in part as follows: 

" 'To and for the establishment, promotion and development 
of a SECRET SOCIETY, the true aim of which and object 
whereof shall be the extension of British rule throughout the 
world, the perfecting of a system of emigration from the 
United Kingdom and of colonization by British subjects of 
all lands where the means of livelihood are attainable by 
energy, labor and enterprise, and especially the occupation by 
British settlers of the entire continent of Africa, the Holy 
Land, the Valley of the Euphrates, the Islands of Cyprus and 
Candia, the whole of South America, the Islands of the Pacific 
not heretofore possessed by Great Britain, the whole of the 
Malay Archipelago, the seaboard of China and Japan, the 
ultimate recovery of the United States of America as an in- 
tegral part of the British Empire ; the inauguration of a system 
of Colonial representation in the Imperial Parliament, which 
may tend to weld together the disjointed members of the Em- 
pire, and finally the foundation of so great a power as to 
hereafter render wars impossible and promote the best inter- 
ests of humanity.' 

"Rhodes expressed the significance of Anglo-Saxonism 
without hypocrisy or equivocation. He called it 'the re-con- 
quest of the United States of America as an integral part of 
the British Empire.' 

"Mr. Carnegie plans to devote practically his entire 
fortune of a half billion dollars to the Rhodes idea. 

"The donation of Mr. Andrew Carnegie of the enormous 
sum of $10,000,000 as a peace fund, yielding $500,000 an- 
nually, should excite interest. A discretionary endowment 
pension fund of almost $20,000,000 for coillege professors, in- 
volving the use of money which must of necessity influence 
our professors is another important fact. The establishment 
of libraries in cities and towns throughout the nation under 
certain conditions is still another. Mr. Carnegie plans to de- 



The American Truth Society 23 

vote practically his entire fortune to the accomplishment of the 
Rhodes idea. These facts should cause us to scrutinize the 
mind and heart of this man if we wish to discover whither 
these contributions may lead us. In June, 1893, Mr. Carnegie, 
in the North American Review, wrote : 

" 'Let men say what they will, I say that as surely as the 
sun in the heavens once shone upon Britain and America 
united, so surely is it one morning to rise, shine upon and greet 
again the reunited state,— The BRITISH-AMERICAN 
UNION.' 

"His plans to carry out this subject were outlined by him 
in an address delivered in the Gilfillan Memorial Hall, Dundee, 
Monday, Sept. 4, 1890, as follows: 

" 'There is only one way you can make a step towards the 
unification and consolidation of the English-speaking race, and 
that is by bringing this little Island into line with the progeny 
she has established throughout the world. The first step will 
be taken in the great mission of the English-speaking race, 
for it will then be so powerful that our race will be the arbiters 
of the world and can enforce disarmament, and if any two 
nations undertake to draw the sword it will be prepared to say, 
Hold, I command you both. The man that stirs makes me 
his foe. Beyond this stretches the noble dream of the poet, 
and I believe it is salutary to dwell upon these dreams that 
should become realities. One step further. After the English- 
speaking race become united we have the Parliament of man, 
the federation of the world.' 

"In the event that American patriotism should resist this 
proposed disestablishment of the United States as an inde- 
pendent nation, Mr. Carnegie said: 

" 'National patriotism or pride cannot prove a serious ob- 
stacle in the way of reunion.' — (North American Review, June, 
1893.) 

"He disposes of our political parties as follows : 

" 'All party divisions sink into nothingness in my thoughts 
compared with the reunion of our race.' — (North American 
Review, June, 1893.) 



24 My Political Trial and Experiences 

" 'His attitude towards political questions in America and his 
contributions are explained by his own words : 

" 'Whatever obstructs reunion, I oppose ; whatever promotes 
reunion, I favor, I judge all political questions from this 
standpoint.'— (Dundee, Sept. 14, 1890.) 

"The fiscal policy of the United States he proposes to sub- 
ordinate to England's, as follows : 

" 'I do not shut my eyes to the fact that reunion bringing free 
entrance of British products, would cause serious disturbance 
to many manufacturing interests near the Atlantic Coast which 
have been built up under the protective system. Judging from 
my knowledge of the American manufacturers, there are few 
who would not gladly make the necessary pecuniary sacrifices 
to bring about a reunion of the old home and new.' — (North 
American Review, June, 1893.) 

"The racial influences which might possibly oppose such a 
union he disposes of as follows : 

" 'The amount of blood other than Anglo-Saxon and Ger- 
manic which has entered into the American is almost too trifling 
to deserve notice and has been absorbed without changing him 
in any fundamental trait.' — (North American Review, June, 
1893.) 

"His plans for universal peace are eminently peaceful : 

" 'The reunited nation would be prompt to repel any assault 
upon the soil or the rights of any of its parts. Consider its 
defensive power. A reunion of the Anglo-Americans con- 
sisting today of 108,000,000 which 50 years hence will number 
more than 200,000,000 would be unassailable upon land or 
sea by any power or combination of powers that it is possible 
to create. The new nation would dominate the world.' — 
(North American Review, June, 1893.) 

"The people's rights and capitols of this united government 
were thus outlined by Carnegie : 

" 'The action of a Congress elected by all these elements 
would not differ much upon fundamental questions aflfecting 
the rights, liberties and privileges of the people, from a Con- 
gress of Americans sitting in Ottawa, or, from the action of 



The American Truth Society 25 

a British Parliament similarly elected sitting in London. No 
citizen of any of the present states either British or American 
would have occasion to fear the loss of anything which he 
now holds dear from reunion.' — (North American Review, 
June, 1893.) 

"It is apparent to true Americans that the ultimate result 
of such policies is the reconquest of the United States by Great 
Britain. It is the revival of the ambitions of Genghis Khan, 
who said, 'There is one God in heaven, there shall be one 
Ruler on earth.' The ruler shall be England. 

"On September 1st, 1913, Richard Burton Haldane, the Lord 
High Chancellor of England, left the King's conscience in 
London and journeyed to Montreal, to address the American 
Bar Association of the United States, which also left its con- 
science behind to go to Montreal to hear him. The eminent 
and distinguished jurist's subject was 'Higher Nationality — 
A Study in Law and Ethics.' After going to Goethe for his 
inspiration and finding it in the German word 'Sittlichkeit,' he 
proceeded to expound in a roundabout way the real purpose of 
his visit and the real purpose of the holding of a meeting of 
the American Bar Asssociation outside of the United States. 
Finally, in conclusion, he said the following: 

" 'In the year which is approaching, a century will have passed 
since the United States and the people of Canada and Great 
Britain terminated a great war by the Peace of Ghent. 
On both sides the combatants felt that war to be unnatural 
and one that should never have commenced. And now we 
have lived for nearly a hundred years not only in peace, but 
also, I think, in process of coming to a deepening and yet more 
complete understanding of each other, and to the possession 
of common ends and ideals, ends and ideals which are natural 
to the Anglo-Saxon group and to that group alone. * * * 
I am concerned when I come across things that were writtv-.i 
about America by British novelists only fifty years ago, and 
I doubt not that there are some things in the American liter- 
ature of days gone past which many here would wish to have 
been without. But now that sort of writing is happily over. 



26 My Political Trial and Experiences 

and we are realizing more and more the significance of our 
joint tradition and of the common interests which are ours. 
It is a splendid example of the world that Canada and the 
United States should have nearly 4,000 miles of frontier prac- 
tically unfortified. * * * i think that for the future of 
the relations between the United States on the one hand and 
Canada and Great Britain on the other, those who are as- 
sembled in this great meeting have their own special respon- 
sibility. We who are the lawyers of the new World and of 
the old mother country possess, as I have said to you, a tradi- 
tion which is distinctive and peculiarly our own. * * * 
We play a large part in public affairs and we influence our 
fellowmen in questions which go far beyond the province of 
law and which extend to the relation of Society to that 'Sitt- 
lichkeit' of which I have spoken. In this region we exert much 
control. If, then, there is to grow up among the nations of 
our group and between that group and the rest of civilization, 
a yet further development of 'Sittlichkeit,' has not our profes- 
sion special opportunities of influencing opinion which are 
coupled with a deep responsibility? * * * This then is 
why, as a lawyer speaking to lawyers, I have a strong sense 
of responsibility in being present here to-day, and why I be- 
lieve that many of you share my feeling. A movement is in 
progress which we by the character of our calling as judges 
and as advocates have special opportunities to further. * * * , 
And I believe that if we * * * as a body in our minds 
and hearts 'highly resolve' to work for the general recogni- 
tion by society of the binding character of international duties 
and rights as they arise within the Anglo-Saxon group, we 
shall not resolve in vain. A mere common desire may seem 
an intangible instrument, and yet intangible as it is, it may be 
enough to form the beginning of what in the end may make 
the whole difference. Ideas have hands and feet, and the ideas 
of a congress such as this may effect public opinion deeply. 
It is easy to fail to realize how much an occasion like the 
assemblage in Montreal of the American Bar Association on 
the eve of a great international centenary, can be made to 



The American Truth Society 27 

mean, and it is easy to let such an occasion pass with a too 
timid modesty. Should we let it pass now, I think a real op- 
portunity for doing good will just thereby have been missed 
by you and me. We need say nothing; we need pass no cut 
and dried resolution. It is the spirit and not the letter that 
is the one thing needful. * * * If we would learn to swim 
we must first get into the water. We must not refuse to begin 
our journey until the whole of the road we have to travel lies 
mapped out before us. * * * And now I have expressed 
what I had in mind. * * * 'p^g occasion has seemed to 
me significant of something beyond even its splendid hospi- 
tality. I have interpreted it, and I think not wrongly, as the 
symbol of a desire that extends beyond the limits of this assem- 
blage. I mean the desire that we should steadily direct our 
thoughts to how we can draw into the closest harmony the 
nations of a race in which all of us have a common pride. If 
that be now a widespread inclination, then, indeed, may the 
people of three great countries say to Jerusalem, 'Thou shalt 
be built' and to the temple, 'Thy foundation shall be laid.' " 

"Can any American citizen doubt the significance of this lan- 
guage? What 'Shalt be built'? Clearly Rhodes' world em- 
pire controlled by Great Britain. What 'Foundation shall be 
laid'? — the foundation of Mr. Carnegie's dream, — 'The Brit- 
ish-American Union.' Now we have the same desire — Rhodes, 
1898 ; Carnegie, 1893 ; Haldane, 1913. 

"The foregoing excerpts from Haldane's address contain the 
key to the pro-British attitude of the press of the city of New 
York with its tremendous effect upon the press of the nation. 
If Lord Haldane suggested a common understanding on the 
Anglo-Saxon question among the members of the American 
Bar Association, there can be no doubt but that a 'Lord North- 
cliffe,' a British newspaper owner, has arranged a similar 
understanding among the American newspapers. College pro- 
fessors, educators and publishing houses have been taken care 
of the same way. We will see later how other institutions have 
been affected." 



Ill ^ 

THE SOCIETY IN ACTION 

The charter of the American Truth Society, filed in the office 
of the Secretary of State of New York, records the objects of 
the Society to be "to propagate a spirit of pure Americanism; 
to preserve American traditions inviolate ; to resist by truth all 
attempts to garble or falsify the history of the United States." 
A review of Mr. O'Leary's activities is interesting for its il- 
lustrations of how scrupulously he complied with the letter and 
spirit of this charter. At his own expense a pamphlet written 
by John C. L. Allen, a member of the Society, describing the 
rise and fall of the American merchant marine, was widely cir- 
culated. Brochures by the same author appealing for the 
Americanization of American corporations and industries were 
also distributed broadcast. Lincoln's address at Gettysburg 
was printed in red and blue on a postal card in the form of 
an American flag and given away in quantities. Resolutions 
were adopted and sent to Congress, urging that body to print 
Washington's Farewell Address as a public document to every 
voter in the country, with the admonition that he read it as a 
proper means of celebrating Washington's birthday. Ameri- 
canization of immigrants was advocated as a means of conserv- 
ing their financial resources for the United States, it being 
pointed out that foreign governments, by controlling banks, 
controlled their resources and ties were thus maintained which 
resulted in the sending of the savings of many immigrants to 
the old home land. The value and timeliness of this idea be- 
came evident, when subsequently investigations were conducted 
into the operations of German, Austrian and Hungarian banks 
in this country. 

It was discovered that in British Guiana laws had been 
enacted excluding American citizens from the ownership of 
oil and mining rights. The American Truth Society exposed 

28 - 



The Society in Action 29 

and protested against this unwarranted discrimination. It was 
also disclosed that our national anthem, "The Star Spangled 
Banner" had been emasculated by the elimination of the third 
verse. This too was exposed and vehement opposition offered 
to the anti-American purpose which inspired this excision. It 
was discovered that certain textbook companies, notably the 
American Book Company, had published histories with certain 
emasculations. One instance in particular merits a reference, 
namely Barnes' "School History of the United States." In its 
early editions a footnote to the account of the Battle of Fred- 
ericksburg contained a very glowing tribute to the heroic 
charge of Meagher's Irish Brigade against Marye's Heights in 
that remarkable engagement. In later editions this eulogy was 
eliminated so that all reference to the Irish extraction of the 
gallant soldiers, who gave to the United States one of its 
finest military traditions, was omitted. 

All these undertakings were financed by O'Leary person- 
ally. He had the vision. He saw the danger. He made the 
sacrifices. As a result of the Society's agitation, histories 
which had been falsified or emasculated, were excluded from 
school use in several states by legislative enactment. In the 
case referred to, the matter was also taken up by the American- 
Irish Historical Society, and resolutions of protest were passed 
by survivors of Meagher's Irish Brigade. Such incidents as 
these were explained by the American Truth Society as tend- 
ing to illustrate the operations of what it stigmatized as the 
British propaganda in the United States. 

Another undertaking of the American Truth Society under 
Mr. O'Leary's direction is worthy of note. The City of New 
York was engaged in the construction of subways, and con- 
tracts involving the expenditure of millions had been let. At 
this time there was on the statute-books a law which pro- 
hibited the employment of aliens on public works. Every 
contract provided for compliance with this law, yet when work 
was in full operation, every contractor violated the statute and 
employed alien laborers at one-half the wage which citizens 
would have demanded. Attracted by some reference in the 



30 My Political Trial and Experiences 

public press to the work of the American Truth Society, a man 
whose ancestors were among the founders of Fort Orange, 
now Albany, called on Mr. O'Leary and related how he had 
been employed on the subway and had been discharged within 
two hours by an Italian foreman, who rejected him because 
he was an American citizen. The foreman could scarcely speak 
a word of English. The citizen was an expert in the work from 
which he had been discharged. 

O'Leary was amazed and indignant and waiving aside the 
thought of compensation, devoted himself to an investigation of 
the actual circumstances attending construction work on the 
subway. He found that contractors were not only violating 
the law, but were discriminating against American citizens, 
even those whose ancestors were among the founders of the 
country and importing foremen employed by agents abroad and 
shipped here to work at lesser wages than American citizens 
could afford to accept. With the endorsement of the American 
Truth Society, Mr. O'Leary began proceedings in the courts 
through the Public Service Commission, and the office of the 
Public Prosecutor, which finally resulted in a declaration by the 
Supreme Court of the United States that the law which con- 
tractors were violating was constitutional. 

When O'Leary began these proceedings he was denounced 
by some of the newspapers, but later during the European 
War, the same papers reversed their opinions and argued for 
the necessity of more stringent laws to protect public works 
from alien labor. The case in the original court was decided 
in favor of his contention. In the Appellate Division of the 
Supreme Court the verdict was unanimous against him and 
the Court ridiculed his views. In the Court of Appeals, six 
judges gave him the decision, one judge dissenting from the 
majority opinion. In the Supreme Court the Judges were 
unanimous in sustaining his contentions. The decision threw 
the subway contractors and financiers into a panic and the situa- 
tion was finally relieved by the Legislature of New York, which 
passed a bill validating all contracts which had been invalidated 
by the decision of the Supreme Court and permitting the em- 



The Society in Action 31 

ploymeiit of alien labor, but only in case3 where citizen labor 
was unobtainable. 

When O'Leary was arguing his points before the Appellate 
Division one of the judges was very hostile and interrupted 
him frequently. Finally O'Leary was moved to remark, "I 
came here to argue this case before this Court, not against it." 
He was permitted to proceed thereafter without further inter- 
ference. An appeal was made throughout New York to pay 
him for his loyal and splendid service, but it yielded little. He 
gave his time, his energies, his talents gladly for the benefit of 
his fellow citizens. He was offered an appointment as special 
counsel in the proceedings by the Chairman of the Pubhc 
Service Commission, Hon. Edward E. McCall, but declined, 
preferring to work as a free lance, even without compensation. 
An attempt was made by the contractors to bribe him — a 
friend having been selected to approach him — but he replied, 
"If I had any doubt before, I am sure now that I am right." 

Just before the European War broke out a Committee to 
celebrate one hundred years of peace with Great Britain was 
appointed, and all over the United States, through the press, at 
public functions, in universities and clubs and by pamphleteer- 
ing, the idea was energetically promoted. Congress and every 
State Legislature were importuned to make the celebration 
official and to appropriate large sums of the people's money to 
pay the expenses of the ceremonies in each State. The New 
York Assembly had before it a bill to celebrate Perry's victory 
on Lake Erie in 1812 and to provide for a monument at Put- 
in-Bay, not to celebrate the victory, but to record the fact that 
it was the last war fought with Great Britain for one hundred 
years. The American Truth Society opposed this ingenious 
propaganda on the ground that it was discriminatory and that 
it excluded other nations with whom "we had always been at 
peace and which had contributed to our upbuilding millions 
of desirable citizens." It opposed the appropriation of public 
moneys for insidious celebrations and as a result of the Society's 
endeavors, all appropriations were prevented and the celebra- 



32 My Political Trial and Experiences 

tion committees were compelled to provide their own funds for 
their undertakings. 

For this public-spirited activity the American Truth Society 
and Mr. O'Leary in particular were attacked venomously in 
many newspapers throughout the country and their efforts 
were characterized as "anti-British propaganda," O'Leary him- 
self being described as an "anti-British agitator." His real 
motive as well as the purposes of the Society, were deftly con- 
cealed from the American people. He smarted under these 
attacks and in public utterances bitterly assailed these news- 
papers, accusing them of "being controlled by British gold." 
These attacks made him a target thereafter for the press, with 
the result that all reports of practically every speech which he 
made thereafter were either distorted or garbled. As a result, 
he turned much of his attention to the press, and in the 
majority of his speeches thereafter, paid his respects to corrupt 
newspapers and their proprietors. 

The constitution and by-laws of the Society were careful in 
limiting membership in it to American citizens. They pro- 
hibited the display of any flag but the American emblem at 
public and private meetings of the Society, and also prohibited 
addresses by any save American citizens at the Society's public 
functions. These precautions were for the purpose of elimi- 
nating any and all foreign influences from the Society's work. 
Before the European war began, the activities of the American 
Truth Society had been widespread and intense. Notable 
among them was O'Leary's appearance before President Taft 
in protest against his signing of the Burnett-Dillingham Bill 
for the restriction of immigration. O'Leary argued "that this 
measure was un-American; that the United States was a free 
country and an asylum for the oppressed ; that similar agitation 
during the previous century had been directed against Irish 
and German immigration and had failed ; that the arguments on 
which it had been based had been fully answered by history; 
and that the historians of the future would be compelled to 
condemn any present attempt on the part of the American 
people to discriminate against Europeans who sought our 



The Society in Action 33 

country as a better place to live." President Taft vetoed this 
bill. 

Like a bolt from the blue the European war broke upon the 
world in August, 1914. It was perfectly natural that Americans 
imbued with the spirit of 1776 should watch the progress of 
events with solicitude for the United States; and when Great 
Britain began to exercise her sovereignty of the seas with a 
view solely to her own interests and a disregard of the rights 
of neutral nations, it was also natural and perfectly compre- 
hensible that Americans of Irish blood should be quick to pro- 
test. At the very outset the American press took the British 
side. American public opinion by virtue of England's supreme 
control of the cables was placed in the power of the British 
propagandists. No race is more instinctively distrustful, of 
the "sanctity" of England's professed aims, or the "morality" 
of her methods than the Irish. Their distrust is the inevitable 
result of seven hundred and fifty years of hateful contact with 
British tyranny, British misrule, and British hypocrisy. No 
one had a better grasp of the sinister and corrupt propaganda 
— England's most potent weapon — than the men in whose veins 
flow Irish blood, warming the quick concepts of a keen Celtic 
intellect. There is no cause for surprise then when in 
January 1915, we find Jeremiah A. O'Leary delivering a lecture 
at Carnegie Hall on the "Unneutrality of the Press." In 
preparation for this lecture he visited the great public library 
of New York, where newspapers are kept on file, photographed 
the headlines for the previous five months and then made skill- 
ful comparison between these captions and the facts as later 
conceded by the same papers, which first had distorted the news. 

For instance, while Liege was featured as still holding out, 
the Germans ten days before had passed through the captured 
Namur ; and when the British were reported to be driving back 
"The Huns" they were actually retreating precipitately before 
them. O'Leary's interest in these falsehoods arose from his 
concern for the American people. He sought to rescue their 
minds from the avalanche of mendacity. He contended that the 
dissemination of falsehood by the press was a menace to the 



34 My Political Trial and Experiences 

purity of public opinion, — a poisoning of the wells, a destruc- 
tion of the American mind. For this he was crucified by the 
newspapers. Undeterred, he developed the Society's in- 
fluence and soon made of it a powerful machine to fight the 
British propaganda. Soon he developed a large and powerful 
following. Within two years more than two hundred mass 
meetings had been held and about seventy-five thousand dol- 
lars had been collected. Branches were organized all over the 
country and a wide distribution was obtained for his writings 
and for the pamphlets of the Society. When the famous Anglo- 
French loan was announced he organized a Depositors' Com- 
mittee of one hundred and urged Americans with bank de- 
posits to line up against the loan. Slips were issued for 
depositors to sign and list their bank accounts, and in seventy 
days his committee represented $75,000,000 in bank deposits. 
Bank officials were interviewed in the interest of neutrality and 
the safety of their depositors. When J. P. Morgan announced 
the result of the Anglo-French Loan Campaign, — an enter- 
prise accelerated at a cost of $3,000,000, engaged in by 800 of 
the best bond salesmen in the country, and advertised in 35,000 
newspapers, reaching from coast to coast, it was found that 
the loan was a failure. The public had bought only $80,000,000 
of the bonds, the munition interests had taken $240,000,000 
and $180,000,000 were turned back unsold to the underwriters. 
This was the greatest success of O'Leary, and at the same time 
probably the most severe blow ever struck at England's 
American interests by an Irish-American. It was also his 
greatest triumph in organization, and showed him as an or- 
ganizer the equal, in fact the superior, of the men who had 
attempted to float the loan. 

The foundation of his victory lay in the fact that Morgan 
could not successfully fight the depositors in the banks of the 
country, regardless of the strength of his influence with the 
officials of these very banks. While the anti-loan campaign 
was on O'Leary swung his public meetings in the Harlem and 
Bronx against Ellsworth J. Healy, a nephew-in-law of Charles 
F. Murphy, because Healy, who was the Democratic candidate 



The Society in Action 35 

for Congress in the Twenty-third New York District, would 
not pledge himself if elected, to oppose foreign loans. Healy 
was defeated by 1,000 votes although his district was normally 
Democratic by 7,500 majority. O'Leary's speeches in this cam- 
paign were wonderfully efifective. He discussed the loan from 
the standpoint of finance, honest neutrality and undiluted 
Americanism. He denounced the Democratic administration 
for giving its tacit sanction to it, and declared that it would 
prove the harbinger of war. His audiences convinced of his 
sincerity were glad to follow his lead and the overturn of a 
Democratic majority was the result. 

O'Leary now was feared and hated by both financiers and 
politicians. In an open, public fight he had defeated both. He 
had shown that he knew how to plan and to operate his plan 
through to success. The financiers' pliant tool, the press, now 
assailed him with even greater ferocity. He was now stig- 
matized as "pro-German," "anti-British" and "the Irish 
Agitator." 

At this juncture, O'Leary appeared with a new weapon. 
The attacks by the press impelled him to find a way to meet 
them on their own ground and in March, 1916, "Bull," a 
satirical monthly, appeared on the news-stands. Its first number 
carried as a frontal design a powerful caricature of the well- 
known cover of London "Punch." In this cartoon "Punch" was 
replaced by "John Bull," sinister of countenance and with a 
knowing wink, while Toby having yielded space to the British 
lion, was seated in a chair. Between the two was placed the 
head of "Uncle Sam," a reproduction from an actual drawing 
in "Punch." John Bull's right hand held a brush, and beside 
him was a tub of mud, indicative of the artist's idea of Eng- 
land's propaganda toward America. The cover was both 
humorous and convincing. There were other details of a minor 
nature, one of which showed John Bull riding a horse kicking a 
poor creature labelled "the rest of the world" in a very tender 
spot. 

The purpose of Bull was self-evident. O'Leary intended to 
counteract British influence in America with that very efifec- 



36 My Political Trial and Experiences 

tive weapon — satire. He had taken a leaf from England's own 
book and proposed to use it against her. The newspapers 
treated his effort with silence and well they did. Launching a 
new publication is an expensive venture. The press calculated 
silence would kill it, but O'Leary persevered. When receipts 
were inadequate he plunged into his own resources. He would 
go into Court, win a case and divide the fee between "Bull" and 
his own family. Slowly but steadily "Bull" increased in 
prestige and in circulation. From three thousand copies, its 
first issue, it grew until September, 1917, the month it was dis- 
continued, it had attained a press run of 48,000 copies. It was 
a magazine which did not stop in the hands of its purchaser or 
be deposited in his waste-basket. Many a copy passed through 
scores of hands before its usefulness and readability came to an 
end. The success of Bull was an index of O'Leary's versatility. 
He was as successful with the pen or in the publication office as 
editor as he was upon the platform. 

When in April, 1917, the United States entered the war, 
"Bull" continued to be pubHshed. Its policies were purely 
American; Washington's Farewell Address, Jefferson's polit- 
ical philosophy and the traditions of the Republic were its 
guiding stars. Its cartoons were both timely and clever. Its 
comments upon newspaper utterances were always crisp and 
to the point and frequently brilliant. It produced much 
original poetry — some good, some not so good, — but all of it 
with a sterling American moral and much of it pointed and 
scintillating. When the prosecution at the trial showed "Bull" 
to the jury, the jurors laughed and as the prosecutor read 
from it some jurors would place the magazine before their 
faces while their shoulders shook with laughter. When the 
United States declared war on Germany, O'Leary suspended 
the activities of the American Truth Society. No more mass 
meetings were held. Nothing remained in the field except 
"Bull," the stock of which was controlled by the Society. The 
actual press-run of the mazagine at the war's beginning was 
15,000 copies. When the United States entered the war 
O'Leary came out in the open and began to write a special 



The Society in Action 37 

article each month on the war, above his own signature. Mean- 
time his health was failing. Assiduous devotion to his many 
enterprises had made him a nervous wreck. He had thrown 
himself into the 1916 campaign because he was convinced that 
the election of Mr. Wilson meant war. He said this in many 
public addresses. As a result of his speeches two Democratic 
Congressmen were defeated in New York City, while in and 
around New York the majorities of at least seven others were 
materially reduced. 



IV 

THE NATIONAL CAMPAIGN OF 1916. 

It is extremely doubtful if any campaign in the history of 
the United States has ever been waged with more momentous 
consequences than the contest between Woodrow Wilson and 
Charles E. Hughes for the Presidency. In 1916 Wilson won 
by a very narrow margin. One State like California would 
have changed the result. The vote in that State was so close 
that it was necessary to wait several days before the result 
could be positively determined. In this campaign, O'Leary 
took a decidedly active part. He was convinced that the elec- 
tion of Woodrow Wilson meant war with Germany. In a 
speech at Indianapolis,* he said: 

"Please let me caution you folks of the West who love 
peace, not to be misled by the Democratic slogan, 'He kept 
us out of war.' The country, dear people, is on the brink of 
war and it has been on the brink of war ever since the Lusi- 
tania was sunk. It now lies in the hands of foreign powers 
to say whether this, our country, shall remain at peace. It 
lies within your power by your votes to say whether war 
shall come or whether we shall remain at peace. Make no 
mistake about it, that is the real issue of this campaign, and 
to avoid war I have leaped the traces of my party and 
espoused the candidacy of Mr. Hughes." 

This was a clear comprehension by him of the future. The 
future then is the past now. O'Leary knew what Mr. Wil- 
son's election meant. He was convinced that the campaign cry 
of the Democratic party of peace was a fraudulent one, and 
he said so. He knew it was a catch slogan for the Western 
vote — the vote for peace. The President, addressing a delega- 
tion of college men on October 7, said: 

• October 25. 

38 



The National Campaign of 1916 39 

"Therefore, we are warranted in believing that if the Re- 
publican party should succeed, one large branch of it would 
insist upon what its leader has insisted upon, a complete re- 
versal of policy, and in view of the support that the candidate 
I have referred to in New York received, that reversal of pol- 
icy can only be a reversal from peace to war." 

This was clearly a reference to the support given to Mr, 
Hughes by ex-President Roosevelt, an out-and-out advocate for 
war with Germany. Mr. Wilson was very subtle in his 
utterances. His hints had a powerful effect upon the multi- 
tude. He understood the opinion and temper of the great 
West and knew better than many around him that the West 
favored peace. Politically, the West was Republican. The 
Republicans calculated that the West , was safe and turned 
a deaf ear to those who advised that a brake should be placed 
upon Mr. Roosevelt's bellicose utterances. It was the uni- 
versal impression that Mr. Hughes would be controlled if 
elected by Theodore Roosevelt, a combination that, in the 
opinion of the advocates of peace, meant war. No man in 
America understood the menace of Theodore Roosevelt better 
in this connection than Jeremiah O'Leary. It was in a heroic 
effort to make Charles E. Hughes see this very danger that 
O'Leary became one of the national figures during the cam- 
paign. 

On September 7th, he attended a conference of German and 
Irish Americans at Detroit. His purpose in going there was 
to prevent that conference from endorsing Charles E. Hughes 
for President. It included practically all the leaders of the 
German and Irish race in America. These men were so bitter 
over Mr. Wilson's poHcies that they were ready to support his 
opponent without knowing his views or proposed plans. 
O'Leary's idea was that Mr. Hughes should be interviewed 
and that Mr. Wilson's campaign manager, Vance McCormick, 
should also be interrogated and that an effort should be made 
to ascertain the attitude of both parties on the question of en- 
forcing American rights against England as the only means 
of avoiding a war which he believed inevitable unless England 



40 My Political Trial and Experiences 

was brought to terms. He based his convictions upon the 
continual threat by Germany to renew the submarine warfare 
in the event that British aggressions were not stopped, and 
upon a letter written* by Thomas Jefferson to Thomas Pinck- 
ney, then minister to Great Britain, in which Jefferson said : 

"The loss of our produce destined for foreign ports, or 
that loss which would result from an arbitrary restraint of our 
markets is a tax too serious for us to acquiesce in. It is not 
enough for a nation to say, 'We and our friends will buy 
your produce.' We have a right to answer that it suits us 
better to sell to their enemies as well as their friends. If 
we permitted corn to be sent to Great Britain and her friends 
we are equally bound to permit it to France. To restrain it 
would be a partiality which might lead to war with France; 
and between restraining it ourselves, and permitting her enemies 
to restrain it unrightfully is no difference. She would con- 
sider this as a mere pretext of which she would not be the 
dupe, and on what honorable ground could we otherwise ex- 
plain it ? Were we to withhold from her supplies of provisions, 
we should in like manner be bound to withhold it from her 
enemies also. This is a dilemma which Great Britain has no 
right to force upon us. She may indeed feel the desire of 
starving an enemy nation, but she can have no right of doing 
it at our loss, nor making us the instruments of it." 

Accordingly, after a long and earnest discussion, he pre- 
vailed upon the conference to appoint a committee with author- 
ity to interview both Mr. Hughes and Mr. McCormick and 
to present a document which O'Leary himself had written. 
Carl E. Schmidt, a Republican and wealthy leather manu- 
facturer of Detroit; Frank Seiberlich, of Boston ;f Will R. 
MacDonald, a newspaper editor, of Chicago, and O'Leary 
himself were designated to wait upon both Mr. Hughes and 
Mr. McCormick, and to present the following demand : 

"We, representing a large percentage of the voters of the 
United States who beheve in American independence and 
sovereignty, in conference assembled at Detroit, Mich., Sept, 
7, 1916, have been attracted by the telegram of congratulation 

• September 7th, 1793. 

t A member of the Massachusetts Legislature. 



The National Campaign of 1916 41 

which was sent by the Hon. Charles E. Hughes, Republican 
candidate for President of the United States, to Theodore 
Roosevelt, upon the deliverance by him of a public speech at 
the city of Lewiston, Me., which carried with it by expression 
and implication, an indorsement by Mr. Hughes of Mr. Roose- 
velt's pro-British and anti-American public utterances, which 
position has heretofore been condemned by us in conference 
and convention as inconsistent with American ideals and 
American history. 

"Under these circumstances we desire to call the attention 
of Mr. Hughes to the fact that Mr. Roosevelt, actuated by 
race prejudice and a desire to serve British interests, designedly 
attacked a large part of the American people, while he did not 
mention any of the flagrant, arrogant and continual trans- 
gressions upon American rights by Great Britain upon the 
high seas; any interference with and destruction of American 
trade and commerce with belligerent and neutral nations ; any 
violations of the sanctity of United States mails; any boy- 
cotting and blacklisting of American business men and busi- 
ness interests; constituting dictation and control of American 
domestic and foreign commerce; the denial of the American 
sovereign right to purchase and operate ships of belligerent 
powers needed to build up an American merchant marine; 
the boarding of American ships on the high seas and the re- 
moval therefrom of passengers contrary to precedent estab- 
lished by Great Britain's demand on our own nation in the 
Mason-Slidell case during our own Civil War; the capturing 
and retention of American ships such as the Hocking and 
Genesee; the brutal treatment of American citizens upon neu- 
tral ships, taken unlawfully into British ports; the imprison- 
ment and indignities accorded American citizens in British ter- 
ritory; the unwarranted and inhuman interference by Great 
Britain with American charity destined for the people of the 
Central Powers and their allies, as well as the Irish people, 
extending even to charities of the Red Cross, an organization 
protected by international agreement and recognized by the 
highest instincts of civilization ; and other offenses too numer- 



42 My Political Trial and Experiences 

ous to mention, all of which are blows struck by Great Britain 
and her allies at the national honor and vital interests of the 
United States, and the dignity and sacred sovereignty of 
American citizenship. 

"This indorsement by Mr. Hughes of Mr. Roosevelt's un- 
American discrimination against American rights and Ameri- 
can sovereignty might very well have been ignored if it had 
not been for the fact that Mr. Hughes, in all his public utter- 
ances since his nomination, has, like Mr. Roosevelt, overlooked 
these great American questions by failing to discuss them. 

"We believe that the aggressions of Great Britain and her 
allies are a political issue in the minds of the great masses 
of the American people, and that such an issue cannot be 
smothered, evaded or destroyed successfully by any candidate 
for the presidency of the United States, and that such continued 
aggressions by Great Britain, continually ignored by American 
statesmen because of their pro-British tendencies in political 
cowardice, must inevitably lead to war as they did in 1776 
and 1812. 

"We believe that American citizenship and sovereignty 
should be respected by every foreign power and where Ameri- 
can personal and property rights have been destroyed, it be- 
comes the duty of the nation, in defense of its national honor 
and vital interests to take every step that may be necessary to 
protect them. 

"We, therefore, designate Carl E. Schmidt, Will R. Mac- 
Donald, Jeremiah O'Leary and Frank Seiberlich as our rep- 
resentatives to place before Mr. Hughes this document and 
we further respectfully request and empower them to secure 
from Mr. Hughes a definite statement for the benefit of a broad 
and liberal Americanism that has been offended by the British 
propaganda, creating as it does racial antagonism in our 
country, with resultant destruction and surrender of American 
rights, whether or not he will administer the presidency of the 
United States in accord with the spirit of the fathers and the 
whole American people, instead of at the behest of present day 
Tories, materialists and war partisans who proclaim the false 



The National Campaign of 1916 43 

doctrine, that American patriotism is British subserviency, 
and the spirit of "76' is a treasonable hyphenism. 

"To this document we, the undersigned representing various 
organizations, individuals, constituents and interests through- 
out the United States, affix our names as an indication of the 
approval of those we represent." 

When the committee arrived in New York, Mr. McCormick 
was in Indiana, and great difficulty was encountered in secur- 
ing an audience with Mr. Hughes. Mr. William R. Willcox, 
chairman of the Republican National Committee, was unwill- 
ing to permit any German-Americans to interview Mr. Hughes 
upon such a crucial matter. He was perfectly willing that 
O'Leary and MacDonald should be present, but objected to 
the rest. When this was made known to O'Leary, he con- 
sulted with MacDonald, and gave the Republican National 
Committee head one-half hour to consent to accept the Ger- 
man-Americans. He threatened to let the country know 
that "the Republican National Committe had refused to per- 
mit American born citizens of German extraction to see the man 
who was seeking their votes." The result was that Mr. Will- 
cox capitulated and an audience was arranged for the follow- 
ing Sunday evening at the Astor Hotel, New York. 

The meeting with Mr. Hughes was held. It lasted at least 
two hours and resulted in the committee being satisfied that 
Mr. Hughes could not be influenced by Mr. Roosevelt and that 
if elected his policies would be vigorously American against 
England as well as Germany. 

Another conference was called at Chicago, on September 
30th. O'Leary and his committee reported to it and as a result 
a resolution was adopted supporting Charles E. Hughes for 
the presidency and appealing to all citizens to vote for his 
election. The proceedings of both these conferences had not 
been made public. On October 23, 1916, the newspapers of 
the country published great scare headlines charging Mr. 
Hughes with a pro-German intrigue — reciting the conferences 
referred to, the written demand upon Mr. Hughes, and the 
minutes of meetings held as well as the appeals sent by the 



44 My Political Trial and Experiences 

conferees to various States advocating Mr. Hughes's election. 
The effect of this publicity was to aid Mr. Hughes because 
it advertised broadly and more effectively than they, the fact 
that the German and Irish American leaders of the nation 
favored Mr. Hughes's election. It also made O'Leary an in- 
ternational figure because the newspapers of the world carried 
the story, and projected into the campaign of 1916 an issue 
which the candidates and politicians aimed to eliminate — the 
enforcement of American rights against England. 

On October 10th, Mr. Hughes made a very strong speech 
at Philadelphia, which was construed as an indication that he 
would, if elected, bring England to terms. He said: "We 
do not propose to tolerate any improper interference with 
American property, with American mails or with legitimate 
commercial intercourse. No American who is exercising only 
American rights shall be put on any blacklist by any foreign 
nation." 

Later at Indianapolis, and just before the campaign closed, 
Hughes declared that if Germany sank any more British ships 
with Americans aboard, he would go to war. The effect of 
this speech was to destroy all confidence in the sincerity of his 
previous utterance that he would bring England to terms. 
The result was his defeat. 



THE O'LEARY-WILSON TELEGRAMS. 

Mr, O'Leary sent his famous telegrams to Mr. Wilson during 
this campaign. He did this upon the overwhelming defeat of Mr. 
Wilson's friend and the Democratic choice, Mr. Westcott, by 
Senator James Martine. Mr. Martine had been turned down 
by the Democratic chieftains at Mr. Wilson's request because 
he had refused to vote at the President's bidding for the repeal 
of the Panama Canal Tolls Repeal Measure. 

On September 29th, 1916, O'Leary sent the following tele- 
gram to the President : 

"WoodrowWilson, President United States, Elberon, N. J. : 

"Again we greet you with a popular disapproval of your pro- 
British policies. Last year from the 23rd New York Con- 
gressional District, and now from your own State and from the 
voters of your own party. Senator Martine won because the 
voters of New Jersey do not want any truckling to the British 
Empire nor do they approve of your dictatorship over Con- 
gress. Your foreign policies, your failure to secure compliance 
with all American rights, your leniency with the British Em- 
pire, your approval of war loans, and the ammunition traffic, 
are issues in this campaign. 

"Do you know that William S. Bennet, a Republican Con- 
gressman, ran in the Democratic primaries in the Twenty- 
third New York Congressional District and polled 36 per cent, 
of the total Democratic vote against his regular Democratic 
opponent? Anglomaniacs and British interests may control 
newspapers, but they don't control votes. The people may be 
readers, but they are not followers of the newspapers. When, 
sir, will you respond to these evidences of popular disapproval 
of your policies by action? The Martine election and Bennet 
vote prove you have lost support among Democrats. Every 
vote for Martine was a vote against you as was every Demo- 

45 



46 My Political Trial and Experiences 

cratic vote that went for Mr. Bennet in the Democratic prim- 
aries in the Twenty-third Congressional District." 

(Signed) "JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY." 
The President sent the following reply : 

"Jeremiah A. O'Leary, 210 Fifth Ave., New York City : 

"Your telegram received. I would feel deeply mortified to 
have you or anybody like you vote for me. Since you have 
access to many disloyal Americans and I have not, I will ask 
you to convery this message to them." 

(Signed) "WOODROW WILSON." 
To the President O'Leary replied as follows: 

"Chicago, Oct. 1, 1916. 
"Woodrow Wilson, 
"Shadow Lawn, Elberon, N. J., 
"Sir:— 

"In your telegram of yesterday you have evaded every 
question that I raised. In acting thus, you have followed your 
usual method of carrying on a controversy with an opponent. 
Now you seek, by an indirect charge of disloyalty — a charge 
which you dared not directly make — to escape the questions 
which you cannot answer. 

"I challenge comparison, both by heredity and environment, 
of my life and antecedents with yours. While three of my 
uncles were dying in defence of the Union, those of your kin 
who dared to fight were struggling to destroy it. 

"In my brief contact with public affairs I have sought to 
follow the advice and example of Washington, of Jefferson, of 
Lincoln, and of the other great Presidents, to the end that all 
Americans might stand upon one plane of equality and 
fraternity. 

"It has remained for you to b»"eak new ground as a President 
and to seek to divide your countrymen into racial and religious 
groups. The word 'hyphenate' was never heard in American 
public life until you coined it to insult your hosts, real Amer- 
icans of Irish blood, at the dedication of the Commodore Barry 
monument in Washington. 

"Now you speak of disloyalty ! What do you mean — dis- 



The O'Leary- Wilson Telegrams 47 

loyalty to America or disloyalty to England? If the first, I 
throw the charge back in your teeth ; if the second, I call your 
attention to the historical fact of the Revolution, which, the 
fathers thought, had delivered us for all time from England. 

"I stand, as men of my blood have always stood, in favor of 
America as against every foreign power. Do you? More 
particularly, I stand against the present aggressions of that 
power from which we wrung our freedom in the Revolution 
and which has ever since, by force and guile, attempted to take 
it from us. 

"I charge again that your foreign policies, your Mexican en- 
tanglements, your action on the Panama Canal, your failure to 
sustain American rights, your truckling to England, your ap- 
proval of war loans, and of the munitions traffic, are all sub- 
versive of the interests of America. 

"You have made your record and no cleverness in the use of 
words can now change your acts. 

"You may take advantage of your exalted position, to which 
you were chosen by only a minority of the American people, to 
abuse great masses of your countrymen, who adhere to the 
principles upon which this great country has always rested, but 
I warn you that you are being weighed in the balance and that 
adherence to your policies will carry you down to deserved 
defeat on Election Day." 

(Signed) "JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY." 

O'Leary's political work in this campaign was remarkably 
effective. He was accused of entering into a cabal with Charles 
Evans Hughes, the Republican candidate for President, when, 
as a matter of fact, he was simply trying to ascertain if Mr. 
Hughes, in the event of election, would compel England to 
respect American rights. A band of young Americans had 
acted in similar manner before the war of 1812, when England 
in those days was also transgressing against American rights. 
So O'Leary had his precedent. Losing every debatable state, 
Mr. Wilson was re-elected nevertheless by the votes of Repub- 
lican States on the Pacific Coast, where the feminine influence 
was thrown to his support under the supposition that he had 



48 My Political Trial and Experiences 

"kept us out of war" and would continue to do so. O'Leary 
informed Hughes in a conference the latter held with a com- 
mittee organized by the former, that Mr. Roosevelt's bellicose 
speeches were hurting his chances for election. Another 
member of the committee, Carl E. Schmidt, a leading citizen of 
Detroit, very tersely remarked: "Mr. Hughes, six weeks ago 
you were elected by a large majority — today you are a beaten 
man." Mr. Hughes almost collapsed at this blunt statement, 
but did not believe it. He was defeated. O'Leary has always 
claimed that if Hughes had come out boldly for a sound Amer- 
ican policy and had discussed Americanism as it was bequeathed 
to us by the Fathers of the Nation, and pointed out emphatically 
that an enforcement of American rights against England would 
avert war, he would have been elected by a tremendous 
majority. When O'Leary visited San Francisco in January, 
1918, he was informed by a prominent pastor whose parish with 
7,000 votes had gone solidly for Wilson that every one of 
those votes would have been cast for Hughes had he announced 
a clear and unequivocal American policy regarding England's 
violations of our rights. 

In July, 1917, O'Leary wrote a letter to the chairman of the 
Executive Committee of the Friends of Irish Freedom, demand- 
ing that a convention of the Irish Race be called. Excerpts of 
this letter contain the gist of his war views. He insisted that 
the Irish in America should follow Washington as did the 
Irish in the American Revolution. A meeting was held at the 
Murray Hill Hotel on August 25, 1917, and, after an earnest 
discussion, a convention was agreed upon, to be held about the 
middle of November, 1917. About this period, the municipal 
campaign being in its initial stages, there was a demand from 
numerous quarters, some of which were anti-conscriptionist, 
that O'Leary should present himself as an independent can- 
didate for Mayor of Greater New York. He declined to make 
the canvass for several reasons, one that being a believer in the 
principle of universal service he could not accept a nomination 
which was being tendered him on an anti-conscription platform ; 
and another, that his entry into the field would create such a 



The O'Leary- Wilson Telegrams 49 

division of votes as might conceivably result in the re-election 
of John Purroy Mitchel — one of his bitterest political foes. 
Things now began to happen in earnest. The Democratic ad- 
ministration at Washington had evidently decided to crush 
O'Leary. On August 16, 1917, the Administration struck its 
first blow barring the September number of "Bull" from the 
mails. O'Leary published one more number, the October issue, 
and in it he scored the Washington officials fearlessly. The 
aptness of his historical references and of his quotations from 
utterances of sterling American statesmen of other days con- 
stituted a merciless indictment of the new and un-American 
policy of the suppression of free speech and free press. By 
means of the Administration's act the circulation of "Bull" 
doubled, upon which O'Leary said, "If I had the facilities, I 
could sell a million copies this month." On October 8th he 
voluntarily suspended the publication of "Bull." He declined 
to permit Postmaster-General Burleson to supplant him as 
editor of "Bull" and to continue to publish it would have been 
impossible, because of that gentleman's arbitrary use of his 
broad powers. 

Just about the time for the meeting of the Irish Race Con- 
vention the Government forces struck their next blow when 
they began the work which ended in the indictment on two 
counts of O'Leary, Adolph Stern, his business manager, Luther 
S, Bedford, his editor and the Bull Publishing Company, the 
corporation which published "Bull." All were charged with 
conspiring to violate the Espionage Act, the total penalties pro- 
vided being forty years. Upon arraignment, all defendants 
pleaded "not guilty" and O'Leary was released on twenty-five 
hundred dollars bail furnished by his wife. The Irish Race 
Convention was not held upon which O'Leary subsequently 
remarked, "It was rather strange that just when the Irish Race 
Convention was called off, I should have been hit with a black- 
jack." The calling off of the Convention was unauthorized. 
No meeting was held, at which such a decision was reached. 
The Convention date was simply ignored by the Irish leaders. 
After his indictment, O'Leary then went into court and tried 



50 My Political Trial and Experiences 

several civil cases with successful issue, thouglj his physical 
strength by this time had failed him. He did this to earn some 
much needed money for his family and to meet the expenses of 
his trial. 



VI 
CONCEPTION OF AMERICANISM 

This brief review of the ante-European war activities of 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary proves that he never was what the press 
insidiously dubbed him, that is to say, "pro-German." A man 
who has engaged in a definite struggle against the British 
propaganda in America since 1905, cannot truly be said to be 
"pro-German" because he continued the struggle after the 
European war broke out in August, 1914. I cannot set forth 
the writings and speeches of this man in this sketch in order 
to prove that from the beginning until his indictment in No- 
vember, 1917, his course has been steadily consistent. I dare 
say that in the near future his speeches and writings will be 
published in a separate volume for the enlightenment of the 
American people. The fact that the American Truth Society 
was organized in January, 1912, proves that it was not in any 
sense an organization inspired by war. I shall, however, quote 
in full a speech he delivered at the time the American Truth 
Society was formed to prove that the mind of this man was 
saturated with a pure and devout love for his country. No 
finer utterance can be found anywhere in recent years, no truer 
conception of what Americanism really is than this. Speaking 
to men whom he inspired with the necessity of combating the 
British propaganda under the guise of a peace movement, he 
said: 

"The subject of the "Peace" Movement is one to which I 
have given considerable study, not because I do not believe in 
peace on earth but rather that I do, but unlike some of our 
good citizens and representatives of the people, who apparently 
have not given the subject any thought and yet believe, I have 
examined it and found it is not a Peace Movement at all but 
something radically different labelled "Peace," like those im- 
ported goods we once purchased labeled "Made in Germany," 

51 



52 My Political Trial and Experiences 

which our Government found were not made in Germany at all. 

"In the United States the word "freedom" is our slogan. 
Imperialists revel in their doctrine over here, while in the 
monarchies of Europe our free principles are carefully sup- 
pressed. Over there the nobility protects monarchical principles 
from which it derives its hereditary privileges. Over here, 
however, we have no dependent nobility to guard the liberties 
of the people. It is true we have a constitution, but the con- 
stitution is an inanimate document. It is like our starry flag — 
without hands to lift it up, it must drag in the dust: without 
soldiers to defend it, it must be trod under foot. 

"In the same way, unless sturdy Americans guard our con- 
stitution, and the principles of our declaration of independence, 
jealously and constantly, they must be trampled underfoot by 
indomitable imperialists who are propagating year in and year 
out monarchical principles in this democratic country, 

"Such is the object of the so-called Peace Movement. The 
most sensational feature of it is, that England was its place of 
birth. England, the proud mistress of the seas, the instigator 
of innumerable wars, the most cruel engine of human op- 
pression the world has ever known; the owner by force and 
conquest of more than one-fifth of the earth. England, the 
war lord and slave driver of man, satiated with ill-gotten goods, 
would now like to rest and digest them. Repose is the first 
impulse of surfeited wealth. Disturbed in her repose by 
troubled dreams, her guilty conscience hears phantom airships 
whirring aloft chanting her swan song as it rang in the ears 
of Persia, Greece, Rome and Spain, and with characteristic 
English cunning she has sent up from her isolated home in 
the seas a dove of peace to the American people with this 
message : 

" 'As surely,' it says, 'as the sun in the heavens once shone 
upon Britain and America united, so surely is it one morning 
to rise, shine upon and greet again the re-united State, the 
British-American union.' 

"The dove which bore this message to us has two dove-cotes, 
one in Skibo and the other upon Fifth avenue, in New York. 



Conception of Americanism 53 

Among Americans he is known as Mr. Andrew Carnegie, and 
amongst Britons as the Laird of Skibo. 

" 'The new nation,' he said, 'would be prompt to repel any 
assault upon the soil or the rights of any of its parts.' The 
recent Arbitration Treaties, the creatures of his ambition, you 
will remember, provided that the parties to a controversy should 
wait a year to avoid the heat of a people's wrath. The dove of 
peace, however, has told us the naked truth of their peaceful 
aims.' 

"Addressing his compatriots in Great Britain he said of the 
new nation: 

" 'Consider its defensive power. A re-union of the Anglo- 
Americans would be unassailable upon land or sea by any 
power or combination of powers that it is possible to create. 
The new nation would dominate the world." 

"Cecil Rhodes, prototype of Carnegie, speaking on this same 
question a few years before his death made this most remark- 
able declaration : 

" 'I contend we are the first race in the world, and that the 
more of the world we inhabit the better it is for the human 
race. I contend that every acre added to our territory means 
the birth of more of the English race. Added to this, the 
absorption of the greater portion of the world under our rule 
simply means the end of all wars.' He outlined British im- 
perialistic ambitions as: 

" 'The extension of British rule throughout the world — the 
perfecting of a system of emigration from the United Kingdom, 
and especially," he said, "the ultimate recovery of the United 
States of America as an integral part of the British Empire, 
the consolidation of the whole empire, and finally the founda- 
tion of so great a power as to hereafter render wars impossible." 
"The words I have just quoted are the crux of the Peace 
Movement. Time does not permit me to narrate facts which 
indicate the p-resence of these pernicious principles in our land. 
The establishment of the Rhodes Scholarships, the Arbitration 
Treaties, the proposed 1914 One Hundred Years of Peace 
Celebration with Great Britain ; the control of our departments 



54 My Political Trial and Experiences 

of education and the circulation by the British Book Trust of 
doctored books, which go into the hands of our children. The 
establishment of Peace Societies, like army posts, throughout 
the United States as a means of manufacturing American public 
opinion on these questions under the pretence of peace ; the 
establishment of a huge peace fund approximating now $12,- 
000,000, and a professorship endowment fund approximating 
now eighteen millions of dollars as a means of perpetuating 
this peace agitation whether we like it or not, whether it is good 
for us or not and of controlling our system of university edu- 
cation as a means of shaping the minds of our future states- 
men ; the erection of a cordon of Carnegie libraries around our 
land as distributing bureaus for Mr. Carnegie's ideas, the 
offering of a pension of $25,000 yearly to our future ex-Presi- 
dents as a means of controlling their official actions upon these 
questions while in executive office, are facts which are food for 
serious thought to statesmen who would save the nation from 
the horrible consequences of such imperialistic paternalism. 

"The provision in the recent Arbitration Treaties creating 
a Joint High Commission vested with independent judicial 
powers was the first overt step by Great Britain to secure the 
consent, not of our sovereign people but of unauthorized 
representatives to this union between the two countries. 

"It is plain that if it were constitutional to establish an 
international judicial tribunal, with independent powers to 
hear and determine international questions, it would also 
be constitutional to create an independent legislative tribunal 
with legislative powers to enforce the legislative enactments and 
judicial decrees, and thus to create, in fact and in effect, the 
British-American Union with a perfect system of government, 
upon all fours with our present Government, with powers, 
executive, legislative and judicial, a situation never com- 
prehended by the framers of our Constitution, and utterly 
destructive to our independence as a nation. 

"Thus the danger was right at our doors. If we had opened 
them disaster would have been upon us in less than twelve 
months, because England would now have a Treaty which 



Conception of Americanism 55 

would transfer at once to a foreign tribunal our jurisdiction 
over our own territory, the Panama Canal and its questions 
of tolls and fortifications, and thus the first bloodless victory 
of peace would be won by the monarchy over the Republic, at 
a terrible loss of American enterprise and a still more terrible 
sacrifice of American sovereignty. 

"An enemy with its guns trained upon our country is a tonic 
to its patriotism but a foraging lion in the garb of an angel 
of peace with an olive branch in one paw and chloroform in 
the other is an object of circumspection to every American 
citizen who believes that "all men are created free and equal," 
and as his ancestors believed in 1776, 1812 and 1865, that such 
principles are still, as then, worth fighting for and dying for. 

"If United British Empire loyalists like Rhodes and Carnegie 
landed upon our shores with infantry and artillery we would 
rally to our standards and drive them off as did Jackson at New 
Orleans, but they hoist the white flag of truce on peace, the 
flag of protection which ensures their safety, the flag upon 
which men of honor have never fired a shot, and with deluded 
ministers of the gospel dispensing their blessings and Tory 
newspapers blazing their way, they march upon our institutions 
with honeyed words and clinking gold. 

"The recovery of the United States of America as an 
integral part of the British Empire" and "absorption of the 
greater portion of the world under English rule as the end 
of all wars" is not a programme of peace, but a declaration of 
war upon Republican institutions throughout the world. How 
peculiarly British it is to hypocritically style such a policy 
"universal ipeace." 

"What is Peace? Literally it is a state of stillness, but 
the peace which is the millennium requires something more 
than mere stillness. The sword may transform the living 
body into lifeless clay, but the stillness of death is not peace. 
The bonds of slavery may bind the subject hand and foot; the 
gibbet may seal his lips forever, but the silence of restraint and 
slavery is not peace, 

"The Boer, whose republic was destroyed by England, may 



56 My Political Trial and Experiences 

submit to overpowering numbers after a cruel and bloody war, 
but the Anglo-Saxon law and order which followed his subjec- 
tion was not peace. Such peace is the peace of the Briton, of 
the Anglo-Saxon if you will — it is the peace of the obsolete 
divine right of kings, but not of a democratic people. 

"We believe that peace exists only where justice prevails. We 
recognize peace only when it comprehends a form of govern- 
ment wherein the absolute and natural rights of the people are 
recognized and guaranteed by the consent and acquiescence of 
one another; wherein every man, without regard to his race, 
creed or color, may strive for and attain, without undue 
restrictions and restraints, the most noble objects within the 
scope of his mind and the possibilities of his being. 

"What has been the effect of these principles upon the con- 
duct of the two nations? While England was destroying the 
independence of the Boer Republic the United States was 
setting Cuba free. While Ireland an oppressed nation, 
governed without its consent for 800 years, was plotting for 
independence from England in 1845, Texas was tearing itself 
from Mexico to embrace our beneficent principles by annexation 
to our States. While England was conniving with Russia in 
1911 to efiface Persia, a nation, from the map of the world, 
the United States by one of its great political parties was 
proclaiming its intention to mankind, if successful in the 
campaign, to establish a free and independent government in 
the Philippines. While England was subscribing one billion 
one hundred millions of dollars for Confederate bonds to 
finance the Civil War and destroy our democracy, the United 
States, under the guidance of the great and good man, Abraham 
Lincoln, was destroying slavery — an imperialistic institution 
which England established upon the American continent when 
Sir John Hawkins, an Englishman, brought the first slave 
ship, the Jesus Christ, into an American harbor and sold its 
human cargo for a rich profit in gold to the planters of the 
south. While Ireland a rich, beautiful and resourceful country 
was depopulating in 60 years under Anglo-Saxon government 
from 8 to 4 millions of people, the United States, a republic 



Conception of Americanism 57 

under other principles of government after casting off Anglo- 
Saxon domination, was growing into a mighty nation during the 
same space of time and increasing from 30 to 90 millions of 
people. 

"Wise men were Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, Adams 
and the rest. They built our government upon the wisdom of 
ages. They drew from the nations of the old world the best 
those nations have produced. We have taken their social 
outcasts and under beneficent principles moulded them into 
Presidents like Lincoln, Governors like Clinton and Senators 
like Webster. We recognize between American citizens prin- 
ciples which are reprobated between European nations. We 
maintain by a constitution and laws a condition of tranquility 
that European nations have never obtained by treaties. By 
substituting equality and justice for social greed and domination 
we have welded together a heterogeneous population, divided 
abroad territorially, into a homogeneous whole, thereby pro- 
ducing in one grand nation the same allied strength which 
only the combined European Powers could possibly produce. 
Thus we have maintained a state of peace between citizens 
that has not been maintained between the nations whence they 
came. 

"Let those from the other side, therefore, who come to 
scoff at our institutions, to preach peace, abide with us a 
while, study our government, our institutions and conditions 
and after they have learned the lesson go back to their un- 
happy countries and try our remedies upon their obsolete, 
misery-making, war-breeding principles, which have driven 
thirty millions of their suffering people to our shores. 

"Our nation is unique in the history of the world. Its 
heritage belongs to no race or class — it is the property of every 
man who claims it. The Declaration of Independence in refer- 
ring to freemen said "all men" not "some men." The framers 
of it took that stand not because they were controlled, as they 
tell us to-day, by the Anglo-Saxon race but rather because 
that race was suppressed and therefore was unable to control 
them. 



58 My Political Trial and Experiences ^ 

"Whose blood drenched the fields upon which this mag- 
nificent temple of liberty has been erected? The German has 
his Steuben, the Irishman his "Jack" Barry, the Frenchman his 
Lafayette, the Dutchman his Schuyler, the Pole his Kosciusko, 
the Anglo-Saxon his Washington, but as Americans we have 
them all. 

"To submerge the word "American" for Anglo-Saxon and 
adopt the peace principles of Carnegie and Rhodes is to tear 
up the Declaration of Independence, because the imperialism 
of the peace movement was the Toryism which the Declaration 
eradicated and the Revolution suppressed. 

"As a nation we are 136 years and still young amongst the 
nations. We have no blots on our national escutcheon. We 
have no plunder to return to lawful owners. We have no 
museums reeking with the spoils of obliterated races and 
extinct civilizations destroyed by our sword. We carry no scor- 
pions upon our back pecking continually at our vitals. We have 
no outraged races snapping like dogs at our heels, so that in our 
age we have sent up before mankind the shrieks of "peace, 
peace." No, thank God ! Our conscience is clear. Our land, 
isolated by a divine providence by the mighty Atlantic and 
broad Pacific, rich in resource and ample with opportunity, 
reposes peacefully in its bosom of nature under the blue vault 
of the stars, and on the faces of our peaceful citizens are the 
impresses of our immortal principles, equality and justice, the 
only precepts which will ever give to mankind the millennium 
so sweet to the human breast, sung by the angels as a message 
from God over the stable of Bethlehem 2,000 years ago — the 
message which England has so ruthlessly, cruelly and consist- 
ently violated in her treatment of subject peoples for centuries. 
"Peace on earth : good will to men." 

In a remarkable letter addressed to Woodrow Wilson, dated 
July 15th, 1912, O'Leary asked Mr. Wilson, then a candidate 
for the presidency, several questions. Although Mr. Wilson's 
secretary, Joseph P. Tumulty, promised a reply, the letter has 
never been answered. Speaking for his Society, Mr. O'Leary 
wrote : 



Conception of Americanism 59 

"George Washington, the father of our country, seemed to 
possess providential foresight when he said for the benefit of 
American statesmen : 

"The great rule for us in regard to foreign nations is in 
extending our commercial relations to have with them as 
little political connection as possible. Passionate attachment 
of one nation for another produces a variety of evils. Sympathy 
for the favorite nation facilitating the illusion of an imaginary 
common interest where no real interest exists, and infusing 
into one the enmities of the other, betrays the former into a 
participation in the quarrels and wars of the latter without 
adequate inducements or justification. It leads also to conces- 
sion to the favorite nation of privileges denied to others, which 
is apt to doubly injure the nation making the concession, by 
unnecessarily parting with what ought to be retained and by 
exciting jealousy, ill-will, and a disposition to retaliate in the 
parties from whom equal privileges are withheld, and it gives 
ambitious, corrupted and deluded citizens who devote them- 
selves to the favorite nation facility to betray or sacrifice the 
interests of their own country without odium, sometimes even 
with popularity." 

"Washington also referred to the class of citizens, whom 
some of our newspapers referred to as rowdies, as, — "Real 
patriots who may resist the intrigues of the favorite nation" 
that "are liable to become suspected and odious." 

"The gentlemen who promoted the treaties, Washington 
described as — "Tools and dupes who usurp the applause and 
confidence of the people to surrender their interest." 

"Lincoln recognized the principles these men were contend- 
ing for when he said in the course of his famous debate with 
Stephen A. Douglass, in July, 1858, as follows : 

"We have, besides these men * * * amongst us — * * * men 
who have come from Europe — German, Irish, French, and 
Scandinavian — men that have come from Europe themselves, 
or whose ancestors have come hither and settled here, finding 
themselves our equal in all things. * * * When they look 
through that old Declaration of Independence, they find that 



60 My Political Trial and Experiences 

those old men say that 'we hold these truths to be self-evident, 
that all men are created equal,' and then they feel that that 
moral sentiment taught in that day evidences their relation to 
those men, and that is the father of all moral principles in 
them, and that they have a right to claim it as though they were 
blood of the blood, and flesh of the flesh of the men who wrote 
that Declaration, and so they are. 

"That is the electric cord in that Declaration that links the 
hearts of patriotic and liberty-loving men together, that will 
link those patriotic hearts as long as the love of freedom exists 
in the minds of men throughout the world." 

"The Democratic platform overlooked these serious consid- 
erations, unless it intended to abide by them in words wherein 
it pledged itself to the promotion of American interests and the 
maintenance of American free institutions and traditions. The 
Republican platform has endorsed Mr. Taft's policies. It is 
a well known fact that Prof. Nicholas Murray Butler, of 
Columbia University, was placed upon the Committee of Reso- 
lutions at Chicago for the purpose of securing the insertion of 
that particular plank. American citizens in the days to come 
must feel grateful for that act, because it gives them this splen- 
did opportunity of repudiating the man who has misrepresented 
them. 

"We therefore, respectfully request that you enlighten the 
American people as to where you stand upon these questions, 
pursuant to the foregoing considerations, which we have gone 
to great trouble to set forth plainly for your benefit. We, as 
American citizens, believe we have the right to ask you and 
the right to have you answer the following questions : 

1. Do you, as a representative of the American people, 
believe in carrying out the policy of no entangling alliances 
with foreign nations as set forth in Washington's Farewell 
Address ? 

2. As a lover of universal peace, which permits no invidious 
discrimination, which we believe you to be, do you, as a rep- 
resentative of the American people, believe in that kind of 
peace, which tends to the concentration of so great a power in 



Conception of Americanism 61 

a foreign tribunal, which would make wars impossible, along 
the lines advocated by Cecil Rhodes and Andrew Carnegie? 

3. Will you pledge yourself, as a representative of the 
American people to the promotion of American interests, insti- 
tutions and ideals, consistent with the interests of all Ameri- 
cans? 

"In the event of your failure to answer these questions, which 
are asked in good faith, we shall assume that you are not in 
sympathy with the questions we present and that you are 
disinclined to commit yourself upon them. The members of 
this society have no political axes to grind. They are anxious 
to support a good American as their candidate, and nothing 
would please them more than the pleasure of supporting you 
if you are fearless in committing yourself upon these princi- 
ples which after all, are the principles of Washington and of 
Lincoln. 

"We believe that the next President of the United States 
will have opportunities such as never before presented them- 
selves to American presidents, save Washington and Lincoln. 
We know that by pursuing policies which shall tend to the 
development of American ideals, distinctively and emphatically, 
that the government of this country as it is presently consti- 
tuted, will be strengthened and the confidence of the people 
in it be permanently assured." 

When O'Leary said in July, 1912, "we believe the next 
president of the United States shall have opportunities such as 
never before presented themselves to American presidents, 
save Washington and Lincoln," he proved he was one man with 
a vision which pierced the future accurately. It is now 1919 
and as Woodrow Wilson is urging the people to accept his 
"League of Nations" his opponents are relying upon Wash- 
ington's policies to resist him. A nationwide agitation is now 
being conducted by thousands of Americans favoring the 
independence of Ireland. This agitation is predicated upon the 
ideals announced by President Wilson as sought to be attained 
by the American Republic in the war. Jeremiah A. O'Leary was 
the first man of Irish blood to comprehend the true significance 



62 My Political Trial and Experiences 

of Mr. Wilson's utterances. When on January 22, 1917, Presi- 
dent Wilson in a moment of intense public apprehension went 
before the United States Senate and declared for the freedom 
of small nations and the right of all people to representative 
government, Mr. O'Leary, quick to perceive, despite his previ- 
ous criticisms of Mr. Wilson, immediately telegraphed him 
as follows : 

"New York, January 22, 1917. 

"To Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States : 
Washington, D. C. 

Our country is to be congratulated upon your true presenta- 
tion of Americanism. Every American devoted to the 
Declaration of Independence must regard your message to the 
Senate with pride and approval. 

Equality, representative government and pursuit of hap- 
piness, the keystone of the republic, you have accurately ex- 
pressed. While it is true that traditional American policy is 
opposed to entangling alliances with European nations, it is 
also true that this opposition is predicated upon the dangers 
such entanglement with imperialism would bring to democracy. 
If the world expresses our ideals, the danger no longer exists. 

I would consider myself recreant to every activity in which 
I have been engaged, to every word I have uttered and written 
on this matter, if in view of all that has been said and done. 
I did not commend your Twentieth Century promulgation of 
Americanism to the world. 

In speaking of Poland as a concrete case, you have spoken 
for Ireland, Belgium and other small nations. The document 
is the greatest American paper since Lincoln's Emancipation 
Proclamation. It is my earnest wish, and, I know, the wish of 
every member of our society, that it may reestablish truth and 
justice in the world, for such a world is a world of peace. 

JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY, 
President, American Truth Society." 



Conception of Americanism 63 

That O'Leary's sympathies were with the American soldier 
is clear from a letter he addressed the American Red Cross on 
July 12, 1917. This communication was widely published in 
the newspapers at the instance of the American Red Cross 
itself which considered it very important to have it known 
that there was a vast difference between opposition to certain 
war policies and the duty every American owed the men who 
were actually making the sacrifices. This letter played a promi- 
nent part in the subsequent trial of O'Leary and serves to cast 
a flood of light on the true character of the author. It dis- 
closed O'Leary as broad-minded and generous. The letter 
follows : 

"July 12th, 1917. 
American Red Cross, 

Central Trust Company of N. Y., 
Assistant Treasurer, 
50 Wall Street, N. Y. 
Gentlemen : — 

Through Mrs. E. N. Breitung, of 16 East 76th Street, I 
recently subscribed $100.00 to your fund. I presume she has 
turned in my name. I take pleasure in enclosing my check. 

While I do not relish the entry of our country into this 
war, still, I feel that it is the duty of every American citizen 
to make every effort to alleviate the suffering of the men who 
are making the sacrifices. 

Wishing you every success in your work, I remain. 

Yours very truly, 
JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY." 
Another letter of extreme importance is one addressed to 
John F. Hylan, then a candidate for Mayor of New York 
City. It is a real human document and discloses a clear 
distinction on O'Leary's part between agitation before the 
war reached the stage of actual bloodshed and the time when 
American blood had been spilled. His letter also played a 
very conspicuous part in his trial. It was published in the 
press of New York at the time and was a potent factor in 
preventing many thousands of citizens from voting for the 



64 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Socialist Candidate for Mayor as a war protest, Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary was never a Socialist, preferring to struggle on for 
the ideals of government expressed in the Declaration of In- 
dependence. Following is the letter : 

"October 31st, 1917. 

Hon. John F. Hylan, 

30 East 42nd St., 
New York City. 
Dear Sir: — 

I am absolutely convinced that the publication of your 
name on the letterhead of the Friends of Peace is a crude 
forgery. It would be a very simple matter to photograph the 
head, plate it, and then afterwards print in on the side any 
name desired. Those who would steal a primary and victimize 
a hundred election inspectors are capable of anything. 

I never saw your name on one of the letterheads before. 
This is the first time I have ever seen this kind of a letterhead. 
It is not the kind I have in my possession, I know your name 
was never submitted to the Convention at Chicago, and it is 
absolutely the first time I have ever heard your name mentioned 
as being connected with the Friends of Peace. Rest assured 
that the organization never did any wrong, except to strive 
for peace, whilst the newspapers that published this question- 
able document were in the summer of 1915 striving to blackjack 
our country into war. 

I have not until this moment moved hand or foot in this 
campaign, but now that priest-baiting, nun-hunting, wire-tap- 
ping and primary frauds have been superseded by palpable 
forgery and gross misrepresentation, candor compels me to 
address you publicly and without solicitation, in order that 
truth shall triumph and falsehood fail. 

The people of this city know full well that I have never been 
a Tammany man. In the last two congressional campaigns I 
fought several Tammany congressional candidates, in vindica- 
tion of my convictions and those of thousands of my fellow 
citizens, having been instrumental in defeating four of them. 
There is not the slightest foundation for using my name or 



Conception of Americanism 65 

my activities or the horrible libels I have suffered, to create 
political hysteria in time of war that shall work injury to you 
or your party. If the Kaiser himself came to New York he 
could not do more effective work to aid his cause by dividing 
our people than is now being done by that cheap patriot who 
wears his uniform in pictures and carries his gun on the 
billboards. 

Now that our boys — our own good, brave, noble boys are in 
the trenches ready to give all for their country; now that our 
country is no longer theoretically but actually in the war; now 
that it calls us not from political platforms of exploiters of 
patriotism, not from the editorial rooms of foreign controlled 
newspapers, not from the pocketbooks of hungry war profiteers, 
— but from the battlefield of honor, wherever that may be; 
now that the sores of the past are being torn agape for petty 
political purposes to the detriment of the men in the trenches, 
— I am convinced that you, bearing the cross "with charity to 
all and malice towards none" can do much during the next 
four years to heal the wounds that have been made between our 
citizens by these wild, roaring mongers. 

For the sake of the men in the trenches and on the seas 
with whom I have never quarrelled and for whom I have the 
deepest sympathy and highest respect — for the sake of their 
mothers and sisters here, — their children, their kind and anxious 
friends — for the sake of concord between our shriven citizens — 
for the vindication, too, of the right of the people to rule and 
for the sake of the future as a warning that forgery, deceit, 
last-minute canards and flamboyant patriotism are no part of 
American political campaigns, — even at the sacrifice of convic- 
tions that had almost forced me to support Morris Hillquit, an 
honest, strong-hearted man, — I hope that you will be elected 
Mayor by a great popular majority. 

The city needs a man to heal, not to aggravate, — to promote 
unity, not to create dissension. Mitchel, if reelected, may 
provoke the people to revolution. He is so hated that he was 
jeered one night last week by over ten thousand people, and he 
fears the people so that he fills his meeting places with thugs 



66 My Political Trial and Experiences 

and strong-armed men. Since you have suffered so much from 
libel you should be better able to administer our municipal af- 
fairs with a thorough understanding of those influences which 
thrive on hatred and profit by destruction. The issue now is 
plain ordinary decency, the basis of all true manhood — the 
essence of real Americanism. The great problem during the 
crisis to come will be conciliation. Experience has proved 
that this can be effected more by love than hatred, — more by 
charity than malice. 

Yours respectfully, 
(Signed) JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY." 

Just before his indictment, O'Leary volunteered for war 
work. Being a lawyer he decided to offer his aid to the 
Exemption Boards who, besieged with legal problems on the 
Draft Law, made a public appeal for lawyers to aid. O'Leary 
responded as follows : 

"November 19, 1917. 
Henry W. Taft, Esq. 

Chairman War Committee of the Bar 
of the City of New York, 
40 Wall Street, New York. 
Dear Sir : — 

I have read your recent statement expressing the need of 
additional lawyers to aid the Draft Boards. 

In view of the widespread misrepresentation in the recent 
municipal campaign concerning my attitude towards this war, 
I am anxious to take advantage of this opportunity for patriotic 
service. 

It has always been the proud privilege of the men of my race 
to prove their devotion to the United States. I sincerely trust 
that you will accord to me the opportunity to prove to my 
fellow countrymen that in common with them I have the 
heart and desire to do my share. Our men are in the trenches 
now ; their blood has Americanized the soil of Europe ; they 
need all the aid that we can give them. It should be the aim 
of every American citizen to encourage the American soldier 
in the thought that his sacrifice will bring about the realization 



Conception of Americanism 67 

of the ideal that he is fighting for. Everything must be 
subordinated to the necessity of winning this war. 

I hereby offer to do any work to which I may be assigned 
regardless of the time involved. 

Yours respectfully, 
JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY." 
He was indicted before his offer could be acted upon. 



VII 
"AMERICA FIRST" 

O'Leary frequently received letters from various sections 
of the country based upon vicious newspaper reports protest- 
ing against the activities of the American Truth Society. All 
such communications received his careful attention. When 
in March 1915, M. D. Aygarn, Superintendent of the State 
High School at Sauk Center, Minn., chided the Society, 
O'Leary wrote the following interesting and illuminating 
reply : 

"New York, March 13th, 1915. 
Dear Sir: — 

I have read your letter of February 10th and in reply I 
beg to enclose you under separate cover a copy of my speech 
at Chicago, also some other matters which might be of interest 
to you, but I want to call your attention particularly to the 
plan and scope of the American Truth Society, which set 
forth facts which should be of tremendous interest to a man 
in your position. If you are a patriotic American, devoted to 
the principles upon which our Republic is founded, you must 
deplore such statements as I have indicated in the prospectus 
of the Society. If you examine my speech at Chicago careful- 
ly, you will observe that I maintained a neutral attitude 
throughout. If you will follow the topic heading of the subject 
matter, you will observe that I have discussed naught but 
questions perfectly relevant to the meeting. You will observe 
that I quoted Washington and Jefferson. You will observe 
the contrasts I drew between the statements of President 
Wilson and the statements of Jefferson. I pointed, for purposes 
of contrast, remarks of Bismarck about America and also the 
opinion of Jefferson about German emigrants. I then appeal 
to the American ideal as I understand it and as history 
presents it. 

68 



"America First" 69 

The unfortunate part of it all is that the press is so pro- 
English that it deliberately misquotes speakers opposed to their 
viewpoint. I am simply striving for the best interests of the 
United States. I was born in this country and my ancestors 
were here for some time back, and my blood boils when I 
observe the abject surrender of American rights to the tyranny 
of England upon the seas. I have drawn my inspirations from 
Washington and Jefferson, as well as Abraham Lincoln. No 
American can study the lives and the statements of these three 
great Americans without feeling as I do about the present 
attitude of England upon the seas. England has always been 
the enemy of the United States. You are a proponent of 
education. You must know this. England is now endeavoring 
to demoralize the public opinion of the United States. As a 
proponent of education, you should realize the effect of false- 
hood and prevarication upon the moral fibre of the people. 
The object of all education is to develop the child, mentally and 
morally. Can you succeed in this noble work if news agencies 
from London flood the United States with an avalanche of 
lies about a people with whom millions of Americans have 
lived in these United States in peace and tranquility ? I wish, 
for your own information, you would read the literature I 
have sent you with care from the American patriotic stand- 
point. If you do so, I have no doubt that you will agree with 
me that conditions exist in this country which are not only 
deplorable, but which require brilliant statesmanship on the 
part of the leaders of the people to rescue the country from the 
dangers which surround it. 

Of course, there is a certain class of people in this country 
who believe that sympathy with England constitutes neutrality. 
There are many things happening in Europe just now and 
also in Asia, which should concern America. The attack of 
the Allies on Constantinople in the light of the statement of 
the Russian Minister to the effect that Russia desires to 
occupy European Turkey, and the statement of the British 
Foreign Minister to the effect that England is favorably in- 
clined to Russia's ambition. While I would welcome the ex- 



70 My Political Trial and Experiences 

pulsion of the "unspeakable Turk" from Europe, still the 
control of the Dardanelles and Bosphorus by Russia, aided by 
England, would open up through the Mediterranean from 
Southern Russia, new trade routes in products which would 
compete, under more favorable circumstances, with a great 
many of our products, particularly wheat. The American press 
has given this no thought. A Russia friendly with England, 
controlling the Dardanelles would make tremendous inroads 
upon American trade. This point should concern the people 
of the West particularly. In China, Japan is enjoying a feast 
all by itself. As Japan is England's ally, her tremendous in- 
fluence in China must result in loss of American trade. The 
"open door" policy in China is being destroyed at present by 
Japan. These two great facts are matters of vital interest to 
the United States, yet how sadly silent has been our press upon 
them, and how sadly deficient and supine has been the attitude 
of the Administration at Washington. Even assuming that we 
are disposed to be friendly with Great Britain in the present 
war, should we surrender our public opinion which England 
values so highly, while at the same time we are being shorn 
of everything of value commercial, also patriotic, which we 
possess. 

I am just as opposed to partisanship on behalf of Germany 
in this country as I am to partisanship on behalf of England. 
I have stated that it would be to the best interests of the United 
States, if Germany won the war. I had in mind the freedom 
of the seas, the rights of trade and other questions which were 
so well raised by Jefferson in the matters which I have sent 
you under separate cover. 

I thank you for writing to me. It has given me an oppor- 
tunity of presenting the matter to you in a more accurate light. 
Of course, if you are so partisan as to be reasonless, the facts 
which I present must only serve to make you more so, but if 
you are seeking truth, if you are patriotically American, de- 
voted to the best interests of the United States, you will ap- 
preciate that the American people are suffering considerably 



"America First" 71 

from the same influences which tortured them on three different 
occasions. 

Trusting that this letter and these matters I have sent you 
will convince you that the statements published in the press to 
which you referred in your letter to me, were false, and 
trusting that you may interest yourself in these questions in 
your part of the country from the American standpoint, as 
they have been presented in the literature which I enclose, 
I remain, 

Yours respectfully, 
JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY." 

Mr. Aygarn made no further reply. He was either con- 
vinced or silenced. 

Perhaps the strongest and most convincing documentary 
evidence which should be presented to attest the patriotism of 
O'Leary was a statement entitled, "America First" which he 
issued on February 3, 1917, when America's participation in 
the world war appeared certain. It was indorsed by the Board 
of Trustees of the American Truth Society as the official at- 
titude of that organization toward the war and copies were 
sent to all the members. When O'Leary's offices were raided 
by Government agents, secret service men abstracted this 
document from his files, but when ordered by the Court to 
produce it they failed to do so. After considerable delay and 
repeated demands the Government finally yielded. The state- 
ment, which accounts clearly for the Government's reluctance 
to bring it into Court, played a strong part in the vindication of 
its accused author. It follows : 

AMERICA FIRST! 

"I have been asked by several newspapers to make a state- 
ment on the present grave situation. In this most serious crisis 
of our country since the Civil War, I believe it is the duty of 
every American citizen to stand back of whatever action is 
taken by the President and Congress. No matter what may 



72 My Political Trial and Experiences 

have been our feelings heretofore about the merits of the 
European War, or, about the attitude of our Government to 
the warring nations, there can be no reservations on the part 
of true Americans in the support that their citizenship and 
patriotism owes to our common country. 

I know that millions of American citizens will be pained and 
distressed over the present situation, and millions and millions 
of others devoted to peace still hope that the war may be 
averted. I know the members and friends of the American 
Truth Society and I am convinced that every one of them is 
for the United States, first, last and all the time against every 
foreign nation which would destroy American rights. This 
has always been our position. 

Do not let any man make a mistake as to where I stand. If 
my country goes to war against Germany, whether justly or 
unjustly, wisely or unwisely, for better or for worse, my heart, 
my soul, and my life, if need be, are at her service. 

One of the most essential assets of the nation is its Irish and 
German blood. It isn't necessary for any American of such 
blood to explain his position. The history of our country 
answers that question." 

The statement was issued when German submarines sank 
three American merchant-ships, the Memphis, Vigilantia and 
Tennessee on the same day, when these ships defied Germany's 
ocean blockade by submarines. 



VIII 

POLITICAL OPPONENTS STRIKE 

In March, 1918, his indictments were moved for trial, and 
the trial day was set for April 10th. Four days before he was 
operated on for appendicitis. His trial was adjourned to May 
20th. On April 23rd, he was removed from St. Catherine's 
Hospital, Brooklyn, to his home, being in a very weak condi- 
tion as a result of the operation. A short time before this his 
lawyer, Henry A. Wise, withdrew from the case, fearing the 
persecution of Washington officials and wrote his client a 
letter in which he explicitly said as much. By innuendos and 
direct suggestions Mr. Wise had been informed that it would 
be well for him to sever his connection with the case. Ap- 
parently the Department of Justice feared his ability, and 
desired to force O'Leary to trial if possible, without counsel. 
Through friends, O'Leary retained Thomas B. Felder, later 
associated with Bourke Cochran. Felder agreed to serve, but 
he had no opportunity to consult his client. When O'Leary had 
left St. Catherine's Hospital he was advised by his physician, 
Dr. Frank B. Jennings, to go to the country and take a complete 
rest, as he could not possibly be in physical condition to stand 
trial within two months ; yet the Department of Justice wanted 
to force him to trial in less than thirty days after his removal 
from the hospital. When he left the hospital his trial was 
still set for May 20th and the Government insisted that it must 
proceed. He had made no preparation of the case. His 
counsel has been compelled to desert him. His new counsel had 
had no opportunity to consult with him. To go to the country 
even for much needed recuperation under such circumstances 
might well be deemed folly. O'Leary therefore elected to be 
taken to his home. Because of his nervous condition he was 
unable to bear with the noise which his four healthy children 
could not reasonably be prevented from making and so again 

73 



74 My Political Trial and Experiences 

he was removed to his father's home, also in the city, with a 
view to greater quiet. He then began the preparation of a 
comprehensive statement of his case for the guidance of his 
lawyer. It was then about May 4th, and he had but sixteen 
days to rest and restore himself to normal physical condition, to 
prepare his case and get ready for his trial. Such a task seemed 
beyond the limit of human possibilities in this brief time. What 
followed later is told in O'Leary's own diary — a very interest- 
ing and fascinating narrative of the actual occurrences. 

Some time in the latter part of April, 1917, a mysterious 
woman, who gave her name as Mme. Marie de Victorica, and 
was alleged to be a German spy, was arrested. At the same time 
her maid, a young Irish girl, Margaret Sullivan, was also taken 
into custody. Great prominence was given in the press to 
these arrests. After O'Leary failed to appear for trial on 
May 20th, three more indictments were found against him. 
The first charged him with a conspiracy to start a rebellion in 
Ireland, a conspiracy to destroy British warships, transports 
and merchant ships, and finally a conspiracy to destroy Amer- 
ican ships. Another indictment charged him with a conspiracy 
to commit treason and still another with a conspiracy to obstruct 
justice. 

At this very time Eamonn De Valera, Arthur Griffith, Count 
Plunkett and other Irish leaders were arrested and thrown 
into jail without indictment or other charges against them. 
The newspapers of the world were crammed with startling 
headlines and news of a gigantic Irish-German plot in which 
O'Leary was featured as the leading conspirator. In America, 
England, France, Italy, Spain, — everywhere that British control 
of the cables reached the Irish in Ireland and in America were 
charged with a sensational conspiracy against both England 
and the United States. O'Leary's disappearance was the pivot 
of the sensation. Next Willard J. Robinson, a young Irish- 
American was arrested, and Captain John T. Ryan, of Buffalo, 
a veteran of the Spanish-American war disappeared, driven 
away perhaps by the mob spirit which in those tense days 
seemed to prevail. A man named Albert Paul Fricke, another, 



Political Opponents Strike 75 

Emil Kippur, another — Carl Rodiger — were also arrested and 
two dead men, Dr. Hugo Schweitzer and a man named Behrens 
were included in those charged with guilt in the indictments. 

No wilder or more sensational indictment was ever filed 
than that charging O'Leary with conspiracy to commit acts of 
violence. All over the United States the press published the 
most sensational articles about him and the whole country 
entered upon a search for him. As his diary reveals, during 
those exciting weeks he was placidly resting and working in 
turn on his chicken ranch, cut off from the world's communica- 
tions and unconscious of the hue and cry against him. He was 
absenting himself that he might recuperate in health and 
prepare for the trial of the "Bull" indictment. The Wise letter 
seemed ample justification for believing that he was the victim 
of an official conspiracy to "railroad" him to prison. Not 
only was perjured evidence to be used against him but he was 
to be prevented from having representation by counsel of his 
own selection, and so barred from a privilege which in all 
civilized lands is accorded to every man under accusation. 

The plan of his enemies was clear. O'Leary for five years 
had been the object of the most persistent newspaper abuse. 
The people were now aroused to a hysterical frame of mind. 
If a newspaper campaign based upon indictments could be 
conducted, and O'Leary placed on trial in the "Bull" case in 
the midst of such a campaign, conviction was assured. It was 
the general opinion that the President would not be displeased 
with a conviction in his case because of the telegrams sent to 
him by O'Leary in the 1916 campaign; telegrams which, it 
may be remembered, drew from the President a rather ill- 
tempered intimation that O'Leary was associated with disloyal- 
ists. To convict O'Leary of disloyalty would vindicate the 
President, while on the other hand an acquittal of O'Leary 
would seem to be a rebuke for making allegations which the 
courts would not uphold. To accomplish his conviction all 
the mighty power of the Federal Department of Justice, en- 
dowed with special faculties by reason of the war, had been set 
in motion against him. A long prison term, perhaps even the 



76 My Political Trial and Experiences 

gallows faced him, and the scales of justice, to which he had 
a right to look for an even and exact weighing of the charges 
against him and of the merits of his defense, seemed disturbed 
in their balance by the shock of the war and the false clamor of 
that mightiest of forces which sway public opinion, even the 
opinions of jurors and prospective jurors — the Press. 

The first problem of the Department of Justice and of its 
agents was to find the indicted man. On the 1st day of June, 
Lyons who had accompanied him westward, returned to New 
York City. En route home he sent a registered letter to his 
wife's brother in Brooklyn. The letter was intercepted, its con- 
tents learned and then it was delivered. Lyons' wife was sub- 
poenaed before the Federal District Attorney in New York City 
and questioned as to her husband's whereabouts. She had no 
knowledge and further stated that she had not seen or heard 
from him for more than a month. When Lyons arrived in the 
city he was promptly arrested and for fourteen days was kept 
incommunicado in the headquarters of the Department of 
Justice. During this period he was rigorously questioned. 
Breaking down under a "third degree" he told the location of 
his former employer, describing in minute detail just how to 
locate the ranch at Sara, as well as the circumstances of its 
purchase and the details of the western trip. Within twelve 
hours O'Leary was arrested and under a heavy guard was 
secretly brought to Portland, Oregon. On June 13th, still under 
a heavy guard, he was brought back to New York, arriving 
on June 18th. 

The newspapers published most preposterous stories of his 
capture. Some narrated that he had resisted arrest; that a 
brisk shooting affray occurred; that his ranch was in a wild 
mountainous country, that it was surrounded by barbed-wire 
entanglements, and that it was stocked and prepared for a 
long siege; that he was protected by Sinn Feiners. Accounts 
of an actual pitched battle preceding his capture were published. 
Ridiculous as these fabrications were, they were a part of the 
plan to destroy him. He might have been killed the morning 
of his capture, but Providence placed him under his automobile 



Political Opponents Strike 77 

at the moment of the arrival of the posse sent out from 
Portland, and in that prone position it would have been foul, 
cowardly, brutal murder to have dispatched him. The western 
men who arrested him were humane. They were of a nature 
not to harm any man unless resistance were offered, in which 
event they would probably have shown little consideration. 
O'Leary's return trip and his experiences are best related by 
himself in his diary which constitutes an interesting human 
document. 

On the morning O'Leary appeared at the Church Street 
Terminal Building in New York in the custody of four secret 
service agents under command of Charles De Woody, he was 
in excellent humor and laughed and chatted with his captors. 
En route he had been reported as having made a confession 
and as being in a state of collapse. He was the attraction of 
curious, gaping crowds. His appearance on arrival gave the 
lie to rumors that he had broken down. 

Even the newspapers, his most constant calumniators, were 
impressed with his manner. The New York "Globe" said : 

"Jeremiah A. O'Leary, the Irish agitator, arrested last 
Thursday on a chicken ranch near Sara, Washington, whither 
he had fled from New York, was brought back today to face 
trial on an indictment charging conspiracy to commit treason, 
the penalty of which may be death. 

"Shortly before noon O'Leary was arraigned before Federal 
Judge Hand and the indictment read to him. He pleaded "not 
guilty," and was remanded to the Tombs without bail. In 
a plea to the court O'Leary asked for the court's aid in obtain- 
ing adequate counsel, as he found that "public opinion and the 
newspapers had prejudiced the bar so that it was difficult to 
get counsel such as he desired." 

"In the custody of a Department of Justice operative from 
Seattle and of Charles De Woody, chief of the depart- 
ment's Bureau of Investigation in this district, O'Leary was 
brought in on the Manhattan Limited of the Pennsylvania 
Railroad. Instead of continuing from Manhattan Transfer, 
this side of Newark, to the Pennsylvania Terminal, the party 



78 My Political Trial and Experiences 

used the tube to Cortlandt street. An automobile waiting at 
the Fulton street exit carried O'Leary and his captors to De 
Woody's office on the fourteenth floor of the Park Row Build- 
ing. 

"Dressed in a dark gray suit, O'Leary did not manifest any 
dejection. His general carriage and demeanor were cheerful. 
Later, in Mr, De Woody's office, he smoked a pipe and gave 
a smiling nod to all who approached close to him. 

"Acting as intermediary for the newspapermen, Mr. De 
Woody asked O'Leary if he would consent to being inter- 
viewed. He agreed, and answered questions willingly. Still 
smoking his pipe, he smiled and bowed to the newspapermen 
as they entered. A soft gray hat matching his suit lay beside 
him. 

"In reply to questions as to his health, he said he was feeling 
fine. 

"I'm resting up," he said. "It's the first rest I've had in 
four weeks." 

"O'Leary said that he had nothing to say concerning himself 
except that he trusted that now that he was back in New York 
he would get a square deal from the newspapers. He explained 
that he thought the newspapers had treated him very unjustly 
before his departure from New York," 

The New York American said : 

"That he intends to fight to the last ditch to clear himself 
of the treason charges was indicated in a written statement 
made yesterday by O'Leary from his cell in the Tombs. He 
said : 

" T have pleaded not guilty. That plea stands as my answer 
and my defense.' 

"This was taken to mean that the former editor of Bull 
has refused all overtures from the Government and all pleas 
of his family to make a complete statement of his alleged 
knowledge of 'made-in-Germany' plans for fomenting revolts 
in Ireland. 

"He was at once arraigned before Judge Learned Hand 
and with a firm voice responded 'not guilty' to the indictments. 



Political Opponents Strike 79 

He then made a statement calling the Court's attention to the 
fact that public passion was so excited that no lawyer would 
dare defend him, and chided the bar for this condition of 
affairs. Judge Hand assured him that he would have an 
able lawyer to look after his interests. Mr. O'Leary's sister 
was the only member of his family in the courtroom and as 
he was being led away to the Tombs, she called him by name. 
He stopped, smiled and as she rushed up to the rail, he placed 
his arms around her and kissed her. In the corridor he met 
his father and greeted him, for the first time showing emotion. 
In less than an hour, handcuffed between two marshals, he 
was taken to the Tombs." 



IX 

TESTIFIES AT BROTHER'S TRIAL 

The following day, although charged with a capital offense, 
he appeared at the trial of his brother, John J. O'Leary, which 
was then proceeding before Judge A, N. Hand, and astonished 
his enemies by taking the witness stand. Knowing his brother's 
innocence, he was anxious to acquit him of any complicity 
in his flight. Many stood aghast. Here was a man convicted 
before trial — ^guilty before all and in the shadow of the 
gallows — taking the stand and facing his accusers in advance 
of any real necessity for so doing. His trip had given him 
some rest and browned by the western sun and neatly attired, 
before such a crowd as had never before pressed into a court- 
room of the Federal Building, he told his story. His smiling, 
confident appearance, his good-natured, affable manner won 
him the goodwill of many present. He told about his trip in 
a straightforward, convincing style. The journalists present, 
impressed in spite of themselves, treated him more fairly than 
was their wont. 

The New York Sun, commenting on his appearance, said : 

"When 'Jerry' came into the courtroom from a door back 
of the judge's bench, conducted by a deputy marshal, he was 
smiling vaguely. After being sworn, he took the witness 
stand and from time to time his face broke into smiles of 
cheeriness that seemed to indicate a restored condition of mind 
and body. In his serious moments there was a deep line be- 
tween his eyebrows which suggested the anxious periods 
through which he had gone. Clean cut, with a clear incisive 
voice, Jerry made a favorable impression as to the spontaneity 
of his testimony. 

"He sat with his Alpine hat on his knees and occasionally 
relaxed in his chair with his thumbs in the armholes of his 
waistcoat. At times, too, he hung his head low upon his breast 

80 




John J. O'Leary, Jeremiah's Oldest Brother, Held in One 
Hundred Thousand Dollars Bail on a False Charge. 



Testifies at Brother's Trial 81 

as though reflecting, while the lawyers disputed. He smiled 
so continuously at Mr. Barnes at one phase that Col. Felder 
said, 'You don't need to mind Mr. Barnes.' During the argu- 
ment over the propriety of this remark he continued to be 
greatly amused." 

The New York Evening Mail said: 

"When Jeremiah stepped up to the witness chair he smiled 
at his mother, who was seated in the back of the courtroom. He 
was dressed in a business suit and presented the appearance of 
a well-groomed business man. In giving his answers to ques- 
tions asked, Mr. O'Leary was cool and deliberate." 

The Morning Sun went into considerable detail to bring 
before the public his demeanor. Speaking of the cross-exam- 
ination conducted by Earl B. Barnes, the Sun said: 

"The cross-examination had lasted two hours more than 
Mr. Barnes had figured on and was all inclusive, covering 
every minor detail of the case, but without once shaking the 
witness or even seeming to embarrass him. He seemed never 
to be at a loss for an answer to a question, though he fre- 
quently took his own time about answering. Only once did 
he seem at a disadvantage and that was an hour or so later, 
at the very end of the recross-examination. 

"The time taken by Mr. Barnes on the cross-examination is 
the best indication of the difficulty he had with this witness, 
who had been described from the witness stand a few days 
before as a second Harry Thaw. Whatever his mentality off 
the witness stand, his performance on it showed merely the 
keen legal mind of the man ready at all times aggressively 
to grapple with the adversary. 

"O'Leary came to the redirect examination as fresh ap- 
parently as when he took the stand at 10.30 o'clock on the 
morning of the day before." 

The New York Tribune remarked : 

"Transforming the witness stand of the United States 
District Court into an emergency soapbox, Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary yesterday hurled his final defiance at the powers that 
were and the powers that be. 



82 My Political Trial and Experiences 

"Today he sits in a Tombs cell, mute and closely guarded. 
When next he appears in public it will be as a man on trial 
for his life, charged with treason against the United States. 
Before passing into this temporary eclipse, however, the fight- 
ing Sinn Feiner improved the opportunity afforded him as 
a witness in the trial of his brother John to present his own 
conception of the reasons for his present plight." 

The press and public expected great sensations from 
O'Leary's cross-examination when announcement was made 
that additional indictments — bringing the total up to five — 
were now filed against him. They were dumfounded when 
the revelations involved not O'Leary but the government, 
which was shown to be in a conscienceless alliance with dis- 
credited politicians and time servers to leave the witness no 
personal right, no counsel to defend him, no effective means 
to resist the invasion of his liberty. Perhaps the most sen- 
sational incident of his cross-examination at his brother's first 
trial was his testimony charging the government with perse- 
cution. The night before he left for the West O'Leary rode 
about the city in an automobile with his brother, John, and 
his employe, Arthur L. Lyons. During the trip he discussed 
his case. When cross-examined by Earl B. Barnes, As- 
sistant United States Attorney in charge of the prosecution 
of his brother on this point, he warned Barnes that he had 
discussed him and his methods. He hesitated about going 
more fully into the conversation. Barnes, however, apparently 
not expecting what was coming, retaliated by saying "all 
right — shoot it !" O'Leary did, and this was his answer. 

"I talked about my indictment, with regard to "Bull." I 
said that the indictment was an outrage; that it was not 
founded on fact; that it was the result of a desperate effort 
on the part of the government offiicials here, who had been 
hounding me for three years to put me in prison, because they 
were politically opposed to my views; that the indictment 
was based upon a violation of the Espionage Act, that is to 
say, the provision of it, interfering with the draft and ob- 
structing recruiting, when, as a matter of fact, I had always 



Testifies at Brother's Trial 83 

believed in universal military service. I said I had served 
six years* when it was not a matter of newspaper notoriety or 
vaunted patriotism to do it; that when the draft measure 
was before Congress, I did not oppose it; that when I was 
asked by certain people to run as an independent candidate for 
Mayor upon an independent platform I refused on the ground 
that I was not opposed to the draft. 

"I also told him I was accused of obstructing recruiting, 
when, as a matter of fact, every man that ever came to me 
and asked me about what he should do about the draft, I told 
him to comply with the law ; and that any man who ever came 
to me to ask about volunteering, I told him to go ahead and 
join the service, preferring the navy. I told him I was in- 
dicted despite these things and that there was not a single 
word I ever uttered that could be reasonably construed as 
interfering with the draft, or obstructing recruiting. I talked 
about the 'Masses' case; about the argument that was had 
before Mr. Justice Hand, between you and Mr. Hilquit, on the 
question of the word 'obstruct,' and how Congress, after the 
Draft Law had been passed, realizing that the word 'obstruct' 
meant physical obstruction had amended the law so as to add 
the word, 'interfere' ; that this was another point to prove that 
my indictment charging me with obstructing, was overdrawn ; 
that it was a political move to injure me and those who had put 
faith in the things I have stood for in this country for the past 
ten years. 

"I told him also I was charged with attempting to create 
mutiny in the army and navy; that I had never at any time, 
and the government knew it, attempted to create any mutiny; 
that my work was all pubHc; that the things I wrote and my 
speeches were distorted by the newspapers; that I never 
made a speech in my life where these newspapers quoted me 
correctly. I never made a speech in my life where the news- 
papers did not put words in my mouth that I never used ; and I 
told him that the newspapers had created a character in me that 
had never existed and had misrepresented me to the public to 
such an extent that when I read about myself in the newspapers 

• sixty-Ninth Regiment, N. G.. N. T. 



84 My Political Trial and Experiences 

I did not know myself. I said that there was not a German 
from the time the European war started who was charged with a 
violation of our neutrality laws, but the government agents 
brought him before their officers either in this building, or 21 
Park Row* and made it perfectly plain to him that if he would 
involve me in the 'Pro-German stuff' he would get his liberty. I 
told him there wasn't a man brought down who was not asked 
as the first question, if he did not know Jeremiah O'Leary; 
if there was not something he could tell the government about 
him? I told him about newspaper men whom I believed were 
Secret Service men, who came around and asked questions, in 
apparent interviews; that the interviews were never pub- 
lished in the papers ; that they were fake interviews, and also 
that they were turned over to the government under the pre- 
tence they were interviewing me. I told him a lot of things, 
Mr. Barnes. I do not want to tell you what I told him." 

Q. I would like to hear it. 

A. "I will be very glad to tell it. I told him I thought my 
persecution was brought about as a result of the recent 
municipal campaign; that I was made an issue in that cam- 
paign by John Purroy Mitchel; that I had retired from all 
political and public activities on the 1st of September, and 
that I was deliberately taken from my retirement by Mitchel, 
put upon an anvil; that in every speech Mitchel mentioned 
my name, and held me up as disloyal to my country. I 
said the people of New York had resented that, because 
they knew that no Irishman was disloyal to the United 
States; that the people of New York had resented it by the 
largest vote ever given to a candidate for Mayor in the city and 
that the worst repudiation any man who had been Mayor had 
ever received had been received by Mr. Mitchel. I pointed 
out the fact that the men behind Mitchel, like Hamlin Childs, 
who had used money to corrupt the electorate in this city, were 
responsible for the making of this issue in that campaign ; that 
they knew at the time Mitchel's administration had been unpop- 
ular and were seeking to use the fact that my brother-in-law, 
Mr. Whalen, was closely associated with the campaign of Mr. 

* Bureau of Investigation. 



Testifies at Brother's Trial 85 

Hylan ; they were trying to use that connection to bring about 
Mr. Mitchel's election, 

"I told him that my indictment came as a result of the dis- 
appointment, the bitter disappointment that Mitchel suffered 
over his defeat ; and that it was an effort by his friends who 
were very close to the Department of Justice here; that a 
conviction was very vital to make good the campaign they 
had adopted; that during the administration Mr. Mitchel had 
been repudiated by the people ; that it was an attempt to restore 
Mr. Mitchel, who had gone down to defeat after he had been 
repudiated, after he had enlisted in the service, when he should 
have enhsted before, to restore him to political favor so that 
he could come back and become a political candidate for some- 
thing else. I told him a lot of things, Mr. Barnes, that night," 

Q. Well, you told him something very bad about me. I am 
interested to hear it. 

A. "I told him you were so overcome with your sense of 
responsibility in this case, so anxious to win it, that you were 
resorting to the desperate moves of throwing out hints and 
insinuations to my lawyer, so that you could get rid of a lawyer 
you were afraid of. I said that you knew Mr. Wise as a man 
of standing, that he knew the jurors who had come here and 
sat in many cases while he was the United States Attorney; 
that you were afraid of his appearance in the case; that he 
in some way interfered with your success. I told him I thought 
you suffered from an over-responsibility, and that you had 
misconceived your purpose as a public prosecutor; that you 
considered your own ambition first, not the question as to the 
guilt or innocence of a man who was charged with a very 
serious offense, I told him, too, that before the Grand Jury 
I was not given a square deal; that there were men in the 
Grand Jury room I did not know who had no right to be there. 
I told him that I understood Grand Jury proceedings, that there 
should be in the Grand Jury room only the Grand Jury, the 
stenographer, the public prosecutor and the man who is being 
examined. I told him that at times there were two, three or 
four men in the Grand Jury room, and that the presence of 



86 My Political Trial and Experiences 

those men indicated a disposition, an interest, an inclination 
upon the part of the government to secure the indictment." 

Q. Did you believe that those, whom you call strangers to 
the Grand Jury, were assistants to the United States At- 
torney ? 

A. I don't know that it is necessary to conduct a proceeding 
with half a dozen assistant United States Attorneys before a 
Grand Jury. 

Q. There never were half a dozen. 

A. Well, three or four. They were over back of the table 
there, I don't know how many there were, but there were 
certainly more than three, at times. I told him also, Mr. Barnes, 
that my examination before the Grand Jury was not fair; 
that it was not an examination ; that it was a cross-examination 
conducted by you and that if I had been represented by counsel, 
or if I had had an equal opportunity to examine myself, or, 
to make a statement that would have equalized the examination 
that Grand Jury never would have returned an indictment. 
I told him furthermore that things which were brought out 
before the Grand Jury had nothing to do with the "Bull" 
case, that there were only two or three cartoons in "Bull" 
pointed out to me to explain, that there was no emphasis made 
upon articles in "Bull" which clearly vindicated me, and proved 
that I was not trying to interfere with the draft or to obstruct 
recruiting, create any mutiny in the American Army or in 
the American Navy.* 

"I told him there were articles in the magazine I wanted 
to place before the Grand Jury in order to explain my motives, 
that I was not permitted to do so ; that I had no opportunity 
to point those things out, nor to prove that in the work I had 
been engaged in, I was fighting for the highest American 
ideals, as emphasized and expressed by Washington, Jefferson 
and Lincoln. I told him also all about what I explained here 
yesterday, about your forcing me to trial, about your coming 
in here and making the remark that I was an able lawyer and 

* It is due to the author and reader alike to mention here that the evidence 
griven by O'Leary on the witness stand is reproduced from the Court record. 



Testifies at Brother's Trial 87 

could try to handle my own case. I told him that, coupled 
with what you had said to Mr. Wise, and what Mr. Wise had 
written me, it was proved your purpose to get me into court 
without a lawyer, so that I could not have a man to ask me 
questions, where I would have to question myself and get up 
before the jury and talk about myself in a way that I did not 
want to do because it would be humiliating and embarrassing. 

"I went into the whole thing that night, all the way from 
my home to Brooklyn. That thing was always in my mind. 
I was always thinking about it, because I felt that this great 
big United States ought to be big enough, even in time of war, 
to see that a man who had always tried to be a loyal citizen, 
and who was raising a family and who had been a productive 
force, that he at least, for the sake of the United States and its 
fair name, should get a fair trial. I talked about those things 
from the time I left home to the time I got to Portland,* and 
that while out there on the ranch, I talked about them still. 
I will talk about them, I am talking about them now, and I 
will ever talk about them; I will never forget them to my 
dying day." 

Those present in Court when this statement was made were 
a unit in believing that the cases against both Jeremiah and 
John O'Leary had been exploded. The answers came straight 
from the heart of the witness and fired a bombshell into the 
prosecution at the very start. Propelled from Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary with all the force and energy of which he was 
capable, they held the jury and courtroom tense and won the 
respect and admiration even of those who up to that moment 
had not known the true character of the man. 

* Oregon. 



X 

A CHARACTER SKETCH 

This sketch would be incomplete without some reference 
to the personal qualities and characteristics of the subject. 
Mr. O'Leary is a man of impressive height and appearance, 
standing six feet and one inch. He is rather slender in form, 
yet his shoulders are broad and well set. His military training 
and athletic development have had their effect, since he gives 
the impression of being both lithe and muscular. 

Like many men of his race, he possesses extraordinary physi- 
cal vitality. The strenuous professional and public labors 
through which he has passed during the past ten years, culmi- 
nating as they did in the hardships of jail confinement, having 
had superimposed upon them a severe nervous collapse, a 
serious surgical operation and prolonged attack of the Spanish 
influenza, have had little lasting effect upon his physical ap- 
pearance. His characteristic and well-defined crown of wavy, 
dark brown hair is now shot faintly through with streaks of 
gray. His features, never too full, but well defined, even 
classical in type, are now a little leaner, perhaps a trifle sharp- 
er, though the magnetism of the O'Leary smile and the bright 
flashes of a pair of piercing blue eyes, well set beneath an in- 
tellectual forehead, shaded by evenly matched and shapely 
brows, distract attention from a too intimate study of facial 
lineaments, accentuated by hardships through which he has 
passed. 

With a form and physique which would attract attention in 
any group of men, O'Leary's main characteristics are still 
the intellectual. There is a dignity and poise in his bearing 
which are never absent, even in the moments of his most in- 
tense mental or physical activity. Possessed of a keen sense 
of humor, he enjoys hearing or telling humorous anecdotes, 
particularly when there is a point to the story which serves 

88 



A Character Sketch 89 

to illustrate an argument, that might otherwise lack in lucidity. 
Probably his most striking characteristic is his sincere de- 
mocracy. The professional man of high rank and the man 
of lowly station in life he meets and greets with the same 
afifable cordiality, with no trace of deference toward the one 
or of condescension toward the other. He is at home with 
the highest as well as the humblest; with all he is always the 
same. While his great popularity is with the masses of the 
people, for whom he has an affection akin to that held by 
Lincoln when he went from place to place speaking and de- 
bating at the same time proclaiming American ideals, his 
warm and intimate friends are numbered in every rank of 
life, from the highest to the lowest. He judges men by their 
devotion to truth and justice. All he asks of any man is 
that he stand erect and be a man. Doubtless, if asked, he 
would state that he subscribes unreservedly to Burns's lines : — 
"The rank is but the guinea's stamp; 
A man's a man for a' that." 
As a speaker he takes high rank. There is nothing of 
the studied polish or of the strained effects of the rhetorician 
in his forensic style, the dominating notes in which are ever 
sincerity and earnestness. His oratory is spontaneous and 
direct. He is at his best in his extemporaneous deliverance, 
and rarely, indeed, does he prepare a set oration. He prefers 
to place his dependence upon his knowledge of the subject, 
as he gauges the temper of his audience. Few speakers of 
extensive experience are more expert in reading the minds 
and hearts of his hearers than he. His idea of public speak- 
ing is not to lecture his audience, but to bring out their true 
opinions. So much is this the case that many, even of his 
friends, are wont to say that "O'Leary has a following which 
always turns out to hear him speak." Yet before new audi- 
ences he is just as certain to win the ready sympathy and 
quick response of the gathering as among those who know 
him best in his home city. He enjoys, as few speakers have, 
the sharp question, the abrupt interruption of a heckler in the 
audience. His responses are quick and effective. Interrup- 



90 My Political Trial and Experiences 

tions never disconcert him. Never does he fail in matching 
wits with such an adversary to score a point and to win ap- 
proval, when others might, under such circumstances, hesitate 
in chagrin or confusion. 

Mr. O'Leary's speaking tour in the Wilson-Hughes cam- 
paign was marked by stirring experiences in which he had to 
contend with a fierce current of passion, prejudice and 
bigotry. Time and again he invaded the enemy's strongholds, 
in many cases at great risk to personal safety and in brilliant 
forensic efforts confounded his opponents. While speaking 
in the Central High School in St. Louis an excited man sud- 
denly jumped up and shouted, "My name is Daniel O'Connell, 
and I am for Woodrow Wilson, first, last and all the time." 
The audience was astounded. The man was very excited. 
O'Leary stopped, turned quickly to his interrupter and asked, 
"You say your name is Daniel O'Connell and that you are 
for Woodrow Wilson?" To which the man replied, "Yes 
sir." As quickly as the interruption came, O'Leary retorted, 
"I am sorry to have to inform you, sir, that if your name is 
O'Connell, Woodrow Wilson is not for you." The audience, 
at first indignant, became convulsed with laughter and broke 
into a storm of applause as it caught the full significance of 
the speaker's sharp retort. 

On another occasion, in Pittsburgh, while O'Leary was mak- 
ing an address in the Pitt Theatre during the same campaign, 
one of the audience suddenly interjected a question. The 
audience resented the interruption and from all parts came 
cries of "Throw him out." In a moment, the situation was 
tense. O'Leary saw several excited men run towards the in- 
terrupter. Seizing control of the situation, he said, "I want 
you men to protect that man from harm. Don't permit any- 
one to touch him. Stand guard over him and don't let him 
leave the theatre until he has asked every question he desires 
about me." The audience obeyed, and for fifteen minutes query 
after query was hurled at the speaker, every one of which was 
promptly and directly answered. When the interrogation 
ended, O'Leary asked, "Have you satisfied yourself about me ?" 



A Character Sketch 91 

"Yes," was the reply, as the questioner arose and led rap- 
turous applause which lasted for several minutes. When sil- 
ence was restored, O'Leary asked if any one else desired to 
interrogate him, remarking, "I am not afraid of questions. I 
invite them, and if I cannot answer them, disregard every- 
thing I say. If I can I want you to disregard those who 
malign me or question my sincerity." 

During the same campaign he addressed an audience at New 
Haven, Conn. Over five hundred men had been sent to the 
meeting to aid several others selected by a local political com- 
mittee to follow and to annoy him. The speakers included 
Bernard H. Ridder, of New York. O'Leary was on the plat- 
form. Mr. Ridder had not spoken long when he was inter- 
rupted with cries of "Sit down ! Sit down ! Put on O'Leary !" 
The shouts became so loud and persistent that finally Mr. 
Ridder, turning to O'Leary, said: "Here, I will let O'Leary 
talk to you. He knows how to handle you." Amidst a storm of 
applause and jeers O'Leary arose. He made no effort to still 
the tumult. He smiled as though delighted with the noise. 
Five minutes later it began to subside. Nevertheless, he made 
no effort to speak. He waited until one could hear the pro- 
verbial pin drop, and then, with great dignity began, "Ladies 
and Gentlemen — and others." Immediately there was a roar 
of laughter, while those who came to interrupt seemed stunned. 
Later, the storm broke again and questions began to fly. Re- 
gardless of the noise, its quality or volume O'Leary could pitch 
his voice above the howl of the mob until it was forced to listen. 
He then compelled every questioner to advance to the left of the 
stage — half face the platform and the audience and ask his 
question. He would then repeat the query, turn to the inter- 
rogator and ask, "Have I stated your question correctly?" 
Upon being answered in the affirmative, O'Leary would turn 
to the audience and answer it, always to the point. He con- 
tinued this method for one hour to the delight of the audience. 
When the questioning seemed ended, a man arose and essayed 
to walk towards the platform. O'Leary, observing him, re- 
marked, "That man walks like a walking delegate." The 



92 My Political Trial and Experiences 

audience laughed, the man stopped and holding up a pamphlet 
he had received at the door, asked, "Did you distribute that ?" 
O'Leary answered, "Yes." "Where is the union label on it?" 
was the next question. O'Leary quickly retorted, "Where is 
the union label on you?" The crowd roared its appreciation. 
When the questioning ended he made a speech lasting one hour, 
without a single interruption, and when, exhausted, he finished 
by saying, "You men came here to prevent me from speaking. 
For one hour you interrupted me and did everything possible 
save violence to howl me down. I fought you until you lis- 
tened to me. I have now made my speech. I have said every- 
thing that I came to New Haven to say without hindrance. 
Whether you agree or disagree with me you must give me 
credit for one thing, and that is, I compelled you to listen to me. 
I have answered your questions. I have made more noise than 
you have, and for one hour I've won what I have been struggl- 
ing for, silence and respectful attention." The audience burst 
into tremendous cheering, and, instead of leaving the hall, 
crowded about the platform and congratulated the speaker. 
A platoon of police was there to escort O'Leary from the hall 
and protect him from violence. The very men who came to 
injure him escorted him to his cab, and as he was whisked away 
they broke into a mighty cheer for the man who had beaten 
them at their own methods. 

Perhaps one of his most effective efforts was his speech in 
New York* after his release from jail. He began at 11:00 
p. m., and finished at 12:15 a, m., yet scarcely a person left 
the theatre, although standing room was at a premium. Few, if 
any, public speakers in America have been more influential with 
their audiences, nor have any been so misrepresented or so 
maligned by the press as O'Leary. Whenever he has been 
advertised to speak there are no empty seats in the house. 
After he has begun few leave the place. He grips the attention 
of his listeners until the close. He has never been known to 
deliver the same speech twice. Although his ideas are entirely 
consistent, he possesses the extraordinary ability to present 
them upon each occasion with a different coloring or settings, 

• The Lezlnerton Theatre, May 26, 1919. t - 



A Character Sketch 93 

thus making it possible for people to hear him frequently, and 
yet to never tire of listening to his fiery eloquence. Some of 
his most delightful experiences included discussions of the Irish 
question with Irish audiences. On such occasions he rises to 
heights of eloquence and a flowing power of expression and of 
vivid metaphor which makes the occasion a memorable one. 
When he delivered the Emmet Day Oration in Boston in 
March, 1916, he was congratulated from all sides and re- 
ceived a tremendous ovation. 

O'Leary is at his best as an effective speaker in discussing 
from out the wealth of his knowledge of American history and 
the profuseness of his memory of the utterances of the Fathers 
of the Republic, the vital problems now confronting Americans. 
Washington is to him a sacred inspiration, God's greatest en- 
dowment to a highly-favored nation ; Jefferson's philosophy is 
his political creed, the secure foundation upon which all that 
is valuable in American institutions and American traditions 
must continue to rest. Lincoln he loves as one of America's 
most fearless advocates. His faith in America is virile, sturdy, 
like the trust the child places in the power of his parent. He 
sees no danger confronting his country if only she is true to 
herself and to the inspiration found in her own history. Nor 
can he see safety, nor statesmanship in any course which 
would involve departure from the chart which the builders of 
our Ship of State drew for us to follow. 

When Government agents raided O'Leary's office and seized 
his check books, they found no evidence of "German money" 
but almost every stub marked "loan, loan, loan, etc.," represent- 
ing money lent to someone in need of financial assistance. 
Crowley & Quinn,* who examined the books of the American 
Truth Society in 1916, found that the organization owed him 
large sums of money. They discovered that this man of com- 
paratively slender means practiced what he preached, sharing 
his substance with the needy, spending his money in promoting 
American institutions, in safeguarding American sovereignty 
and individual liberty, and all with no selfish interest in view. 

* Certified Public Accountants. 



94 My Political Trial and Experiences 

The accountants' report contains the following interesting state- 
ment: 

"The personal check book of Mr. Jeremiah A. O'Leary, as 
well as memoranda kept by the Society, shows that he has 
advanced personally, to the Society, large amounts of money. 
We have examined Mr. O'Leary's check books and checks 
returned by his bank. The total of such personal advances to 
February 29, 1916, was $5,152.47. Of this amount Mr. 
O'Leary informs us he advanced $250.00 for the payment of 
printing the first prospectus of the Society. Claim for this 
amount has been waived by Mr. O'Leary. Mr. O'Leary has 
also waived the payment of $1,000.00— $500.00 of which he 
contributed to a fund of $5,000,00, raised by the Society, and 
$500.00 he waives by the acceptance of this report. The 
Society has paid Mr. O'Leary $3,150.00 on account, leaving a 
balance due him February 29, 1916, of $752.47. The records 
of the Society show that Mr. O'Leary has not received any 
salary or emolument." 

It is most useful at this point to set forth a few items from 
canceled checks examined since March 1, 1916, in order to 
make still clearer the absolute sincerity of the man who, al- 
though relatively poor, made such tremendous sacrifice for 
"the cause" as he always termed it. Here is his effective an- 
swer disproving for all time the now exploded charge of 
"German Money." It is a list of checks to Bull Publishing 
Company showing the sums he supplied out of his own purse 
when "Bull" needed funds : 

Jan. 30, 1917 $ 150.00 

March 3, 1917 600.00 

March 24, 1917 20.00 

April 14, 1917 150.00 

June 23, 1917 50.00 

July 6, 1917 750.00 

Aug. 23, 1917 50.00 

Nov. 28, 1917 83.33 

$1,853.33 



A Character Sketch 95 

The above figures do not total all the moneys thus ex- 
pended without return. There are other additional items 
which would bring the total up to at least $3,000.00 — all of 
which were proved at his trial. 

As another illustration there is a canceled check showing a 
payment on August 30, 1916, of $1,500 to the American Truth 
Society, and another of $325.00 payable to Carnegie Hall, hall 
rent, for a mass meeting which was held by the American 
Truth Society on February 2nd, 1917, to protest against the 
high cost of foodstuffs and to advocate an embargo on such 
commodities. On this food embargo campaign alone, O'Leary 
lost at least $1,500 as a result of the failure of the American 
Truth Society to reimburse him for expenditures made. He 
always said, "The people can never be made to see and under- 
stand the necessity for supporting financially movements which 
aid them. In all my work I have been compelled in most 
instances to advance the funds myself and then secure reim- 
bursement from the people after I have demonstrated the 
value of the service." 

In the campaign carried on by the American Truth Society 
against the Anglo-French loan floated in 1916, and directed by 
O'Leary, the society had only $750.00 in its treasury when the 
campaign began. When it was finished the society had con- 
tracted for the expenditure of approximately $10,000, which it 
raised by an intense campaign for funds to reimburse it. When 
this eflFort was over the society was able to pay its bills and to 
show a balance to its credit of $7,500, an extraordinary public 
tribute to the work of Jeremiah A. O'Leary. It was the revela- 
tion of such interesting facts which not only won the jury which 
tried him, but also created great admiration in the jury for 
the man so that when he was tendered a public reception* in 
New York City after his release from the Tombs, eight of his 
jurors attended and joined in the great demonstration which he 
received when he arose to address the meeting. 

There are numerous other details that might be narrated, 
but these must give way to more important matter. The com- 
plete story of his trial which ought to be available to every 

•May 25tb. 1919. 



96 My Political Trial and Experiences 

American, was suppressed in its chief features, and while 
the charges against him were pubHshed in scare headhnes, his 
splendid defense and vindication received scant space in ob- 
scure columns of the newspapers. 

In conclusion I want to affirm that, as a soldier who has 
fought for my country during the recent European war, I have 
ever been proud of my friendship for Jeremiah A. O'Leary, 
I know him to be a true and loyal American, a man whose 
memory will be revered when his maligners are forgotten, not 
as an Irishman as many have been wont to call him perhaps 
because of his Irish name, but as an American devoted first 
and foremost to America's highest ideals, and through that de- 
votion always a firm advocate of the freedom of Ireland. 



PART II. 

My Experiences 

The Diary of 

Jeremiah A. O'Leary 

from the 

Time of His Departure from New York to the 
Beginning of His Trial 

including 

His Experiences in the Tombs and in the 
Prison Ward of Beixevue Hospital 



I LEAVE FOR THE WEST. 

O'Leary's trial was set for May 20th, 1918. It was a date 
for which his numerous enemies waited with eager and grim 
expectancy. The press, instigated and financed by sinister and 
un-American forces, continued to inflame public opinion to the 
highest pitch by repeatedly charging O'Leary with disloyalty. 
To bring him to trial while the wave of hysteria, fanaticism 
and indignation was at its height would be to ensure convic- 
tion. The occasion was all the more favorable since the ac- 
cused was suffering from the effects of a severe operation. 
O'Leary, not conscious of this, was nevertheless destined to 
deprive his enemies of their Roman holiday. When he was 
called to trial he did not appear. He had gone on a trip to the 
far West and for a time at least had baffled his persecutors. 
The story of his journey and experiences as revealed in his 
diary, is one of the most interesting, most appealing human 
documents ever published. It shows the author to be everything 
that his staunchest admirers believed him to be — a devoted 
American patriot, a fond husband and father, a religious man. 
His life, thoughts, ambitions and suffering from the time he 
left New York for the Pacific Coast until his return and 
during his incarceration in the Tombs prison are recorded in 
the following pages : 

Tuesday, May 7. — Left New York at 10 o'clock from the 
Pennsylvania Station with Arthur L. Lyons. Dressed in blue 
serge with light stripe, usual appearance — destination, St. 
Louis. Nothing unusual occurred on trip. Towards evening 
we approached Pittsburgh. While dining I met an acquaintance, 
a former Manhattan college man. He is an engineer and ex- 
plained all about the rock formations of the country through 
which we were passing. 

Wednesday, May 8. — Arrived in St, Louis about 10 a. m. 

99 



100 My Political Trial and Experiences 

We made inquiry about trains to Denver, My trip from New 
York has fatigued me, and my wound and lower abdomen are 
numb. I am very weak. We walked about to get tickets, got 
shaved in the Hotel Imperial barber shop. Finally we went to 
the Portland, a small hotel. I registered as "Waters" and 
Lyons as "Corbett." 

We dined at the Portland, made some purchases, and at 10 
o'clock, amidst the tears of mothers bidding their drafted sons 
good-bye, left St. Louis for Denver via Kansas City and Union 
Pacific. St. Louis is a real metropolis — more like the East 
than the West. 

May 9. — Kansas City, so early in the morning, seven o'clock. 
We took a trolley car to the business section of the city, 
breakfasted and afterwards took an automobile ride. We 
saw the stockyards, watched men buy and sell cattle. Some 
were fine beasts, others small and scrawny. The owners or 
brokers — many wearing sombreros — ride about on horseback. 
The cattle were in stalls or pens, each one marked to indicate, 
(I suppose) their owner. There were acres of these pens, 
all filled with cattle. In the distance were slaughter houses not 
quite so large as the great abattoirs of Chicago but large enough. 
Kansas City is a great cattle center and thousands of cattle 
change hands there daily. We rode about the city and saw 
the residential section, one of the most beautiful I have ever 
seen. The occupants of these attractive houses are fortunate. 
The people of Kansas City have much to be proud of. The 
city has wealth and shows it nicely. I can see here great civic 
pride. The people are very plain. The girls dress well, they 
are pretty, while the men are plain-looking and hardheaded. 
There is a slight cosmopolitanism about the city but it is not 
Anglo-Saxon in any sense. The people of Kansas City ought 
to be in sympathy with Ireland but I suppose like a good many 
more of our Western cities they are lectured to death by 
British propagandists and poisoned by an inspired and venal 
press. Farewell! Kansas City. I like you. 

At 1 o'clock we were away and soon speeding over the plains 
of Kansas. The train was full of young soldiers, going to 



I Leave for the West 101 

Camp Funston. Fine boys, the bloom of health in their cheeks, 
blue eyes, brown eyes, black, brown, light and red haired, 
varying types of the Caucasian race. How my heart bled for 
these boys as I looked through the car window upon the com- 
fortable homes they left. For what? God knows — when will 
they return ? God knows, too ; only God knows. I have always 
loved the boys and I talked to them. "Going to camp ?" I asked. 
"Yep" says one. "Drafted?" "Yep," remarked another. 
"Ever have any military training?" "No," said the first. One 
resembled a German-American, the other had an Irish strain, 
but they looked alike — typical Westerners. Their families 
were on their minds. They talked about occurrences at the 
station — Httle things — ^but they chatted about them all the time. 
These boys are brave, too young for deep thought, too young 
for grief. Soon they will be in uniform and assigned to vari- 
ous branches of the service — infantry, artillery, machine guns, 
transport, hospital, aviation, a thousand and one different places 
— where each will help in the gigantic undertaking the country 
has set its shoulders to. As far as I could see, the whole coun- 
try is working for the war. Everywhere on both sides of the 
train is tilled land. Camp Funston is a city of sheds as far as 
the eye can see to the south, and it seems as though it takes 
the train fifteen minutes to pass it. Well, there are the boys, 
thousands of them, some say fifty thousand. Good-bye, boys, 
and God bless you! If you can get over you'll win; if you 
can't, how can you fight ? 

May 10. — Denver. The city was not yet awake when the 
train pulled into the station. Breakfast again. It's cold. 
Coming in I saw cars covered with snow. The first thing we 
did was to buy overcoats and cravenettes. I've seen Denver 
before. It looks the same. It gives one an entirely different 
impression from Kansas City. 

Leaving Denver for Salt Lake City, we ran into a snow- 
storm and for three or four hours beheld a beautiful picture. 
The foothills of the Rockies cloaked in a mantle of 
snow. What could be purer than mountain snow freshly 
fallen? Just imagine it, May 10th, and snow is falling. 



102 My Political Trial and Experiences 

May 11. Salt Lake City. — What a refreshing spot! The 
Mormons certainly had good taste. Approaching Ogden and 
Salt Lake City I saw the coziest and the most homelike look- 
ing farmhouses or ranches as they are called here, I have ever 
seen. They M^arm the heart. What w^onderful opportunities 
for poets ! Have they been painted in song ? Have they been 
described in prose ? I shall not attempt it, my pen fails. The 
things I saw affected me too much to write about them. I saw 
happiness, men, gaunt, strong, quiet and contented ; women, 
silent, serene and happy. That's why their homes smile. That's 
why I felt their warmth. If the people in our cities could only 
content themselves here, how much happier they would be. 
How strong and healthy their children. How much they could 
save. They must dress their children in fine clothes. Even 
the poor of the cities like to see their children looking nice. 
They wouldn't find it necessary to buy shoes all the time. The 
children kick their shoes to pieces in a month. Out here they 
could keep their feet healthy, they could kick till they were tired, 
the more they kicked the stronger their feet would become. 
Barefooted boys make good soldiers. I saw that on the train 
running to Camp Funston. Why don't they come out and 
settle here where the air is pure, the sky clear, the sun warm 
and kindly, where the ground yields up its crops like bread 
from heaven? You can ride a horse out here and the horse 
is glad to see you. In New York a saddle horse costs you five 
dollars an hour. Out here you can ride all day for nothing 
and they'll carry you all day long. Where are those fools who 
want to keep out immigrants ? Shame on them ! Here is the 
country for them. See the vacant land waiting for them. Are 
we dogs in the manger? Have a care you thoughtless of our 
cities, have a care. Look beyond and around you. In one 
hundred years where will you be? In one hundred years this 
land will still be here. It will be inhabited by immigrants or 
their children. God has His own ways about things. They call 
it Nature, I call it God. Those without children seem to have 
the most prejudices. They certainly have the most time to 
devote to public affairs, but the poor people who don't bother 



I Leave for the West 103 

about politics and wealth, have children, whom they love. Their 
screams and joyful prattle sing sweeter songs to them than the 
soul-stirring violins of the Metropolitan. I love music and 
opera too, but I love children more. I would prefer the joyous 
shrieks of my children to all the music in the world. I would 
rather receive the smile of a little child than the favor of a 
fussy spinstress or worse, a fidgetty childless woman, because 
next to the warm sun which gladdens the heart is the smile of 
the little child. They have them here. That's why their 
homes look so cozy, perhaps too, that's why I love them so. 

What memories these children will have! What pictures in 
their minds of childhood days ! What a magnificent start ! No 
wonder outsiders who come to New York "get away" with the 
best of everything. Here's where they get the energy, the 
wisdom, the foundation. When shall these strong men of our 
land, these real Americans rescue America from the grip of 
foreign influence? When shall they demand that these things 
I see shall be the inspiration of the real America ? God has built 
His country around these mountains. When shall we take the 
hint and recognize the backbone of our patriotism, our national 
soul, to be the great ideals of the fathers, not those bred by 
kings and aristocracy but those given us by just such people as 
these without frills, gilt or gold, homely, rustic, pure? That's 
the question. When the country rules the country the country 
shall be free. While the city rules it, riding roughshod over 
the country, the country shall be in slavery. We can't beat 
this picture in my mind to-day, we can scoff at it, sneer at it, 
avoid it, we can devote our lives to Mammon, but in the end we 
must fall back upon this great West, our backbone for our 
life and strength. 



II 

IMPRESSIONS ON THE JOURNEY. 

At three o'clock we left Salt Lake City for Portland, Ore. 
At Ogden, Lyons and I decided that I should not return to 
New York, My country has been cruel to me. I love it but 
it has fallen into the hands of those who hate me. I spoke 
too plainly, I thought my country was free. War is on, but 
how could free speech hurt the war? Is my country right? 
If so, what has she to fear? If wrong, she has much to fear, 
the fear of being set right, O, my country ! I have loved you 
all too much. I have given too much thought to you. I should 
have gone on and made money. In New York I should have 
agreed with the powers that be; instead of antagonizing the 
press, I should have sought its smiles. How foolish I have 
been. Earning a princely income from my profession, I should 
have accumulated a fortune and joined those who are grind- 
ing the people of this country into cynicism and socialism. 
Now, I am a fugitive from injustice. From now on I shall 
be hunted. My family will be hunted — a family which never 
failed its country. Quietly, unostentatiously it has done its 
duty. From four devoted grandparents there has sprung up 
enough humanity to settle a small town. In those khakied 
ranks stands every boy ready to fight, yet here am I, in a train 
speeding towards an unknown country to hide — running away, 
from what? From justice? God forbid! They want to try 
me on the twentieth. They want to try a man twenty pounds 
underweight, a nervous wreck, without counsel. They drove 
my lawyer away from me. I paid him $1,000 and he told me 
that he would be persecuted if he represented me. A former 
United States attorney giving up his client because he feared 
persecution! Great God! If he felt persecution and he a 
Southerner too, what plans have they for me? No, I am 

104 




Stephen Whalen O'Leary, Eighteen Months Old at the Time of 
His Father's Trial. 



Impressions on the Journey 105 

not running away, A man with Irish blood never runs away. 
I am only tripping them up, disconcerting them. They'll get 
me. I can't hide in my own land. Soon the whole country 
will be looking for me. My picture will be plastered all over 
it, I can't escape, but I can at least bring the people to their 
feet. I can secure their attention for a few moments and then 
tell them the kind of democracy they have been trying to 
hand me. That's the best way I can serve my country and 
in serving it thus, in drawing about myself for a short while, 
and my honored home a cloak of oblivion, I can best call the 
attention of the generous-hearted American people to the un- 
American infamy of those who proclaim that an American 
who hates the imperialism — the cruel imperialism of England 
as Washington and Jefferson despised it, — is disloyal to the 
United States. That's why I am in this train thundering 
along between these mountains and if I can get back my 
strength, with God's help, I'll go back even if I have to walk 
and face them. They can be beaten because they are wrong. 
They can be beaten because they are actuated by prejudice, 
by newspaper headlines. They do not possess the facts. But 
enough of this. The country is too interesting. I must not 
think of the East any more. I am now in the West — in God's 
country — and as I love it I want to see it. I am going to 
live in its bosom and as I love it I shall be happy there. Kind 
friends will look after my wife and children. I will miss 
them, but their faces shall be ever before me to cheer me. 
I know they will not forget their "daddy." 

A man who fights for his convictions has no right to a 
soft heart. He must harden it if he is determined to go 
through with it, God help his wife and children. They 
never understand. They need him, they want love, love ! love ! 
all the time. I have left my wife and children in comfortable 
circumstances. They have a beautiful home, I paid for every 
stone in it, I gave my wife $21,000 the day I went into the 
hospital for my operation. That sum was my life's savings — 
all I had. That will take care of them for a while if she is 



106 My Political Trial and Experiences 

frugal and careful. All for them, very little for me. Why 
not? She has risked much for me. God bless them all and 
protect them until I see this business through. It isn't the 
first time a man with Irish blood has been in this position and 
since fate has selected me, I shall face what's before me as an 
American and that means a good Irishman. 

May 12th. We have passed through Baker City. We are 
in Oregon, the country explored and opened up by Lewis and 
Clark. I am reminded now that Cadwalader's story of the 
Lewis and Clark expedition was ridiculed in England. 

Cadwalader wanted to develop the country. England wanted 
to keep Englishmen in England and carried on a villainous 
propaganda against America to frighten her people from it. 
England knew well how great America was and might be. 
She knew well how pure our political ideals were, consequently 
she libelled us to her people and her people believed. Eng- 
land is wise. She is now engaged in telling us what wonder- 
ful institutions she has and she has the means of informing 
us under her control, and we believe. This is Sunday. All 
day long we travelled across the State. I have just seen the 
Columbia River and am disappointed. It's too serene. It looks 
yellow, but they say still water runs deep and I know that 
salmon do not like dead water. Evidently the best of it remains 
to be seen, I am glad I waited. Now we are approaching the 
Mount Hood Country. We have traveled over the mountains, 
up and down through Oregon's famous forests. The train 
rattled down a canyon as though it was glad to be over the 
ascent. What wild scenes! A good place to cut down some 
trees, build a log cabin and live as the Indians did with rifle 
and rod. Here's the Columbia again. What a different river ! 
How the water leaps and foams! It looks angry now. The 
salmon surely must be there. I imagine I see them as the 
sun shines through. Here and there are black streaks which 
might be salmon and then again they might be illusions pro- 
duced by the speed and shadow of the train against the dis- 
turbances of the water. 

I can now see the grandeur of the Columbia river as it 



Impressions on the Journey 107 

cuts its way through gorges or flows smoothly through the 
land farther east. Now it rests, again it rushes, anon it 
sleeps, later it leaps. What a beautiful playground for the 
strong, princely salmon! Columbia, you are a mighty river 
and America may well be proud to call you her own. Oregon 
is fortunate to possess you. Later on I shall be anxious to see 
whether the people appreciate the wonderful advantages of 
a great waterway like you wending its way midst mountains 
and through valleys to the Pacific. Navigation has com- 
menced. We now meet mighty locks which seem to tell me 
that boats ply here. That is The Dalles, where the crystal 
pure Des Chutes River empties its waters into the Columbia. 
What beautiful water and what a meeting of waters! If 
Moore could have seen this. The waters of the Des Chutes 
cutting their way through a gorge fairly dash down the in- 
cline, so glad and joyous are they to join the great Columbia. 
Far out into the stream is the purest water I have ever seen 
swirling around in little eddies as though dancing with delight 
to find its home in the bosom of the queen river of the Pacific 
Slope. Now I get a glimpse of the great Columbia Highway, 
a magnificent road paralleling the Columbia River. It is 
crowded with automobiles, like any automobile road running 
out of New York on a Sunday afternoon. Apparently the 
people of Portland realize and appreciate the grandeur of 
their State. We have passed through Mt. Hood. Great 
crowds got on at the station there. We are nearing Port- 
land now. Lyons is back on the observation car. He is not 
missing anything. I am alone in my compartment writing and 
thinking. The scenery along the Columbia River from The 
Dalles is very interesting. Across the river are barren-look- 
ing mountains and wooded ones as well. The day is beauti- 
ful. We can see the salmon wheels which pick the fish up 
and place them in a box. Occasionally I see someone fishing 
on the banks. I envy him and feel that perhaps I may soon 
have a chance to fish on the Columbia River. We are approach- 
ing Portland. The passengers are beginning to move towards 
the exits. Lyons returns. We get our grips and wait. As 



108 My Political Trial and Experiences 

the train pulls into Portland about six o'clock, I am tired 
and weak. The trip has exhausted me. I am glad it is over. 
Whatever I shall do, will be done in and from Portland, 

Our first stopping place in Portland was the Hotel Cor- 
nelius where we registered, Lyons, as Thomas L. Corbett and 
I, as James Waters. The Hotel Clerk calls me "Mr. Waters." 
We got a room and bath on the fifth floor. What a relief ! — 
a bed and bath. I make good use of both. We eat in a 
Chinese restaurant in the basement. For thirty cents I got 
soup, excellent chicken, potatoes, peas, ice-cream and coffee, 
well cooked and well served. Restaurant prices are low in 
Portland. I like that idea very much. They had music. That 
helped some. To get two meals for one dollar is really demo- 
cratic. 

I go to bed in Portland — tired, a nervous wreck, or as the 
boy in the street would say, "all dragged out." 



in 

IN SEARCH OF A HABITATION. 

May 13th. We looked over the advertisements in the Sunday 
papers for a ranch. We have decided to buy one and hire 
some one to run it. We marked several advs. but only one at- 
tracts me. It offers a six-acre chicken ranch, house, several 
buildings, 600 chickens, fifty rabbits, crops in the ground, 
household furniture, tools, etc., for $950. I have about $1,500 
now and $500 in Liberty Bonds, We decide to look into it. 
We also decide that an automobile is indispensable and a 
Ford the most suitable. We seek advertisements of Fords 
for sale. We find them. "Corbett" starts out to buy one. I 
remain in my room. I couldn't go out if I would. I ought 
to be in a hospital instead of a hotel. I stay in bed during 
"Corbett's" absence. He returns in four hours to tell me of 
bis luck. He has a car. Good ! We decide to get dinner and 
talk it over. "Use your own judgment," I said, and he does. 
He buys, pays a deposit and agrees to give $450 for a second 
hand Ford. Imagine it! Fords are high here now. War is 
on and you can't get a new one. Don't ship them any more. 
Old cars sell for the same price as new ones. "Beggars can't 
be choosers," so we accept the imposition. "Same all over 
the town," "Corbett" says, "Fords are diamonds out here." 
Another moving picture show tonight. More love, wild west, 
fun and nonsense. 

May 14th. "Corbett" and I decide to hire an automobile and 
drive out to Sagar's chicken ranch. It is located at Sara, 
Washington, about 15 miles north of Vancouver or about 20 
miles from Portland. It is raining hard, but what matter. We 
start about 1 o'clock and get out there at 3 p. m. We see 
the ranch. "Corbett" visits it while I remain in the car. It 
looks good. The house is small but cozy looking. Smoke is 
curling up from the chimney. It is surrounded by chicken 

109 



110 My Political Trial and Experiences 

houses almost as big as itself and by a wire or netting fence 
about six feet high. I can see a few small fruit trees and 
growing crops. It is in a small clearing with woods to the 
rear and left front. A canyon yawns to the side through which 
apparently flows a small creek. The house has a veranda 
in front and a tar paper roof. There are four other ranches 
in plain view, one practically across the way, another along- 
side to the east and two others to the west across the canyon. 
I am strongly impressed with the ranch. It is more than I 
expected and just what I want — a small, homelike place situ- 
ated in one of the most delightful spots imaginable. In front 
are two great fir-trees standing like silent sentinels on guard. 
To the rear is a romantic looking wood with great fir trees 
protruding upwards here and there amongst the smaller ones. 
To the west is a clean sweep — in my imagination — to the Pa- 
cific. What a delightful place to live but a poor one to hide! 
I'll reserve judgment. "Corbett" returns. He walks like 
business. He has been all over the place thoroughly and des- 
cribes it as "just the thing for you." I am reserved. I want 
to see others. We return to Portland, he full of enthusiasm, 
I determined to see others. Another moving picture show. 
More melodrama and nonsense. The people of Portland are 
just as crazy over moving pictures as New Yorkers. Ten cents 
for a night of entertainment is cheap but perhaps in another 
sense it may prove very expensive. What are these moving 
pictures doing to the minds of the American people ? Are they 
improving or destroying them? They certainly are not im- 
proving them. We should be very careful about the moving 
pictures. 

May 15th. We have received our Ford. I don't like it. It 
doesn't run right. It has a self-starter as a recommendation 
but that's all, "Corbett" however, says it is all right and he 
knows. We decide to visit another ranch at a place called 
Scapoose, A broker has recommended it. We start. It is still 
raining. Everything goes well until we reach the mountains 
and then trouble begins. The rain has made the roads slippery. 
We slide down hill and we cannot climb up hill. "Corbett" 



In Search of a Habitation 111 

wants to turn back. I object. He loses his temper but I am 
determined to go ahead, so we agree to run the car off the 
road, abandon her and push on in the hope of reaching our 
ranch before dark. As is usual in such cases, we were mis- 
directed. We were told the Winter's ranch was only a couple 
of miles further on. We left our car at six o'clock and walked 
four solid hours along a railroad track, the last two in dark- 
ness. I suffered severely. I thought my wound was burst- 
ing open, my feet became covered with blisters. I grew ex- 
hausted, my legs became heavy but I pushed on. "Corbett" 
was swearing but swearing couldn't help us here. We finally 
came to a small shack alongside the track from which emanated 
the sound of music. "Corbett" knocked at the door. A 
man who responded was asked where the Winter's ranch 
was and much to our surprise we were directed up a hill 
"through the woods, over a fence, and alongside the path 
that'll take you right to the door." We followed directions 
and landed at the passageway designated. The place was 
dark. Every one was asleep. A dog barked furiously inside. 
We knocked. A voice cried out, "Who's that?" "Corbett" 
explained that we were sent by a broker and the voice replied, 
"Wait a minute." We did. Soon a light appeared and shortly 
thereafter, a tall, thin man about sixty years of age in "night 
apparel' appeared at the door. We apologized for coming 
so late, explained the reason and soon we were sleeping in 
a real old fashioned western bed with ropes as springs and 
plenty of blankets. We slept promptly and soundly. 

May 16th. Had breakfast. Looked over the ranch, twelve 
acres. It was a crude wild place and the owner wouldn't 
part with anything save the buildings and crops. He wanted 
$1,000. We said nothing, admired the surrounding country, 
the clear sky, the pure air, the water, got our breakfast, and 
left. We had the same walk back and after getting towed 
by a team for about a half mile we finally got started and by 
afternoon, were in Portland. I went to bed, my feet were 
fearfully blistered, but worse than that, I was stiff, sore and 
in the worst physical condition I ever felt in my life. It was 



112 My Political Trial and Experiences 

a wild, useless trip and "Corbett" was right in protesting 
against it. It didn't do our "Rolls Royce" any good. It was 
covered with mud, in some places two inches deep. No moving 
pictures tonight for either of us. 

May 17th. "Corbett" suggests that we buy the Sara ranch. 
I am cured of ranch hunting. "All right," I answer, "go 
ahead." I'm too ill to go, so "Corbett" goes. He brings along 
money enough to pay a deposit. We agree to buy at once, 
take title without search and stipulate that the Sagars must 
vacate when the title is secured. No time can be lost. It is 
Friday. Next Monday is the day set for my trial. I shall be 
marked "absent" and the wires of the country from Maine to 
Florida and from the Atlantic to the Pacific will burn. We 
must get on the ranch by Monday at the latest. That's the 
plan. "Corbett" sets out. I stay in Portland. "Corbett" 
doesn't know when he'll be back. I am glad enough to remain 
in my room. I must rest or I shall be unable to go anywhere. 

I am alone in a strange city. My thoughts turn to home. 
My mind endeavors to pierce the 3,000 miles which separate me 
from my loved ones. I have an inclination to return and let 
my enemies crucify me. What difference does it make? I can 
sit mute as Casement did in London and let Britain's royal 
beast devour me. I have done nothing wrong. "Bull" never 
violated any law. I am innocent. They charged me with 
obstructing the draft, il never opposed the draft. On the 
contrary, I endorsed it as an emergency measure. Europe 
was armed to the teeth. So was Japan. We should have an 
army. These are and were my views. I stated them publicly. 
The government knew it, too. I was also charged with 
attempting to create mutiny in the army and navy. How 
ridiculous ! I know how to create mutiny and could have done 
it easily had that been my purpose. There were boys in New 
York who would go to Hades for me. Mutiny was far from 
my mind. I merely wanted to protect my country. 

I wanted Wilson to follow in the footsteps of Washington. 
Wilson was a democrat. I wanted him to follow Jefferson, 
founder of the Democratic party. I wanted England to free 



In Search of a Habitation 113 

Ireland. I warned my country of England. I opposed foreign 
loans because no American public official has any right to 
write the name of the American people to a check paying 
a billion dollars to England, France or any other foreign 
country. No such power is granted him anywhere in the 
Constitution of the United States. I wanted Americans to 
buy American wheat at as low a price as Britishers could 
purchase it in London. Is there anything wrong about such 
ambitions? Just where mutiny and obstruction of the draft 
exist in advocating such policies, I don't know. If a man 
looks askance these days he is a "traitor," a mob is instigated 
by the corrupt press, demagogues or professional patriots 
to hang him, or, some notoriety seeking District Attorney 
wants to send him to Atlanta* for twenty years. This is fine 
democracy. Even Liebknecht who actually organized and car- 
ried out a very serious riot in Germany in which many people 
were killed and injured, received only ten years from the 
much condemned German autocracy. In Ireland, Orangemen, 
like Sir Edward Carson were rewarded with cabinet offices for 
far more serious political ofifenses. In England "Jo^i^ Bull," 
a weekly magazine, said more about the British conduct of 
the war than "Bull" ever published about the British Em- 
pire. In Germany, Maximilian Harden, of whom we have 
read much in our press, had his paper suspended for a few 
days only, after which he was permitted to resume publica- 
tion, although his utterances were far more radical than 
any I have ever given expression to. Those responsible for 
my persecution in Washington know these things well and 
so do the subsidized newspapers whose policy is "England 
first." 

They also know that I never violated any law. It's a 
reign of terror and nothing else. It is Southern government 
with a vengeance. It's a real patriotic service to prevent a 
massacre of justice such as would occur were I to go on 
trial next Monday. A feeling of outrage and oppression that 
came over me every time I felt inclined to go to trial keeps 
me, perhaps, from returning because my practice and inclina- 

•Federal Prison. 



114 My Political Trial and Experiences 

tions always have been to keep court engagements promptly 
and faithfully. Such are my thoughts as I sit here alone, 
listening to the roar of traffic below, the honking of automo- 
biles, the grinding of trolley cars and the usual noises of a 
busy city. I have some books and am beginning to read. I 
eat no supper and go to sleep hungry, too weak to go down- 
stairs for nourishment. 




Gertrude Whalen O'Leary, Wife of Jeremiah A. O'Leary. 



IV 

LIFE ON A CHICKEN FARM. 

May 18th. I feel a little better. I dress and go down to 
breakfast. I eat an orange, some cereal and drink a cup of 
coffee — my breakfast for the past fifteen years. "Corbett" 
gets back in the afternoon. He purchased the place, has the 
papers and has brought the elder "Sagar" in, leaving his son, 
"Willie," a cripple, at the ranch. He went to an employment 
agency and hired Sam Stine at $30 a month to cook and do 
the ranch work. "Willie" Sagar will get out on Monday, 
leaving on the Ridgefield stage or by our car. "Corbett" must 
return. Stine is waiting for him. He will return again Mon- 
day in the afternoon. He leaves again and I am left alone 
once more. I am still sore and very weak. My feet ache 
and my room becomes my home. I gO' out only for meals 
and eat very little. At about 8 o'clock I set out in search of 
a church. God's blessing doesn't hurt anybody but helps 
much. For two hours I tramp the streets looking for one 
and find none. Catholic churches seem scarce in Portland. 
I see what looks like one, but it is dark and the church is not 
the kind I am looking for. I am exhausted. I abandon the 
search and return to the hotel and to bed. I'll go to mass 
tomorrow. I'll follow the crowds. They'll take me to a 
Catholic church. They've done it before in strange cities. 
I'll ask no question, not now at any rate, it would be dangerous. 

May 19th. I follow the crowd and find a church — a little 
wooden structure with no steeple, il enter, hear Mass, listen 
to a sermon, ask God's blessing on my family and my under- 
taking and leave, feeling better. I have the day to myself. I 
walk about a little, see Portland, pass Wilton Lackaye, the 
actor, who doesn't see me. Finally I retire to my room, think 
of home, wife and children, mother, father and loved ones, 
and go to bed. 

115 



116 My Political Trial and Experiences 

May 20th. My trial day. I awake at 6 o'clock (9 o'clock 
in New York). I can't imagine I'm not going to court. All 
my inclinations are to get ready, but how am I to get there? 
Three thousand miles away! I want to telegraph and to tell 
them where I am and what my condition is. Any doctor 
would laugh now at the idea of my undergoing a six weeks' 
trial. He would scoff at any notion I could conduct it. I'd 
collapse in two days. All I want is a rest. Give me back 
my strength and I'll fight them to a standstill, despite the 
mad clamor of the press. I have faith in American juries. 
They can get two, three, perhaps six, scoundrels, but they 
can't get twelve. I've had fifteen years' experience with 
American juries and I know they are the finest, squarest and 
most just in all the world. They always gave me a square 
deal, but if I cannot stand on my feet, how can I pull through ? 
They'll mistake my condition for guilt. The newspapers 
will distort and misrepresent everything. There's the rub. 
I'll go through with it. So I wait. 

It's now seven o'clock. The jurors are assembling. The 
courtroom is pretty well crowded. Col. Felder, my new 
lawyer, is there. John, my devoted brother, is also there. 
Both, perhaps, expect me. They are talking. John hasn't 
seen me. He is puzzled, worried, frantic, perhaps. Earl 
Barnes, the District Attorney, is at his office preparing for 
the trial of his life. The witnesses are there ; the office staff 
of the American Truth Society, of Bull Publishing Company, 
is present, the stage is set for a massacre of justice, and here 
I am in a room in a hotel in Portland, three thousand miles 
away, known as "Waters." What a strange drama! What 
a peculiar, fascinating experience! Truly only a war could 
create such a situation as this. It is now 7.30. The judge is 
on the bench. The gentlemen of the press are sharpening 
their pencils. Mr. Barnes, Col. Felder, members of my family 
and friends are on hand. The case of the United States of 
America vs. Jeremiah O'Leary and others is called. The clerk, 
in stentorian tone, calls, "Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Adolph Stern, 
Luther Bedford, Bull Publishing Company, to the bar." 



Life on a Chicken Farm 117 

O'Leary does not appear. Everyone looks around. Where's 
O'Leary? He isn't here. Then, silence, afterwards whispers, 
later Mr. Barnes makes a statement. The Judge forfeits 
O'Leary's bail. Twenty-five hundred dollars is gone. My wife 
is on the bond. She loses twenty-five hundred dollars. She 
also loses her husband. God help her ! Because I have kept 
faith, suffering will now be her portion. By 2 P. M. "extras" 
are on the street. "Extra ! Extra ! O'Leary disappears !" shout 
the newsboys. Everybody snaps the paper. The wires of 
the country are now burning. The wireless stations radiate 
the message to the ships at sea, "Watch for O'Leary." Every 
port is now closely watched. The Mexican and Canadian 
borders are closed tight. The sleuths of the country are on 
the qui vive. 

At three o'clock "Corbett" appears, il am ready. I pack my 
grip, pay for the room, $32.00 for eight days, and depart. 
We are now speeding towards the ranch. About 4.30, I 
arrive there dressed like a rancher with mackinaw, blue shirt 
and high-topped shoes. I am now "Jack Wells," from South- 
ern California. I am introduced to Sam Stine, a tall, thin, 
sharp-featured man, of sixty-five, and very intelligent looking. 
He is cooking supper and going about his work very much 
like a country housewife. He looks neither to the right nor to 
the left. He stops, however, to shake hands, tO' give me a 
sharp look and says, "How do"? After which he returns to 
his very important duties. While Sam is cooking supper, I 
walk about the premises. The house has a large parlor, a 
big kitchen and two cosy bedrooms. The parlor contains 
an old couch, two rocking chairs, a table, stove, shelving and 
two stifif leg chairs. Pictures are on the walls, sea and farm 
scenes predominating. The furniture in my bedroom con- 
sists of a bed, bureau, washstand and chair. The bed is a 
light, iron affair, which "Corbett" and I shall occupy together. 
There is a window which opens in on a hinge and gives a 
good view of the West. The other bedroom is about the 
same. That's Sam's. The parlor has three windows. The 
kitchen is excellent. A tolerably good cooking stove, a table 



118 My Political Trial and Experiences 

and a sink attract attention. A water faucet is attached to 
a barrel in a little room nearby. Windows are plentiful and 
judging by the roaring of the fire the stove is a good cooker. 

Two steps to the rear of the kitchen is a fine shed for 
wood, a work bench and some tools. Between the two is 
a pump and a good platform running almost the full width 
of the house. This is an excellent place, more comfortable 
than many a shack used by city folks to spend a Summer 
on the shores of some lake. There are three large chicken 
houses in splendid condition, a small one and rabbit hutches. 
All the chickens are white Leghorns. The whole place is 
surrounded with a wire fence seven feet high. There are 
about eighty laying hens and ten roosters. They are in an 
enclosure by themselves. In a little fattening pen are about 
thirty roosters waiting for market. Another house is tenanted 
by about two hundred small chickens, varying in age from 
two to four months. About forty of the finest pullets I 
have ever seen are housed elsewhere on the premises. To the 
rear of the house of the little chicks, the incubator shed. There 
are three incubators, two or three brooders and about one 
hundred and fifty of the prettiest little chicks I ever saw, 
running about whistling and feeding. What beautiful rabbits ! 
About fifty hares and the cutest young ones. Most of them 
are yellow in color, some are grey and white. Ten breeders 
are fine specimens. The remainder oomtprise young and 
growing ones. I always liked rabbits. These will interest 
me. I also was partial to all kinds of animals and fowl. Here 
are things to occupy my mind. I can now study nature at 
close range, a pleasure I've always longed for. 

We feed the stock. Gee! What hungry things! They 
trample each other down. We give them mush, made up 
of ordinary bran, boiled potatoes, bone dust, a tonic, meat 
scraps, a very tempting diet — and they love it. We give them 
all they want. The smaller chicks get fine cracked corn 
and a little mush. They are hungrier than their elders. We 
collect the eggs and find about six dozen in the nests. They 
are selling at 35 cents. That's $2.15 I've earned today, 



Life on a Chicken Farm 119 

but wait, a bag of bran costs $1.75; $3.00 represents 100 
pounds of com, or 75 pounds of chicken feed; and meat 
scraps and bone dust are also dear. Chicken food is very- 
expensive now. They had better be careful and eat sparingly, 
because if they eat me out of my money, I'll eat one every 
day. Well, I have six hundred. It will take me six hundred 
days to eat them all. That's pretty good. Each one of these 
birds would cost me about $1.50 in an ordinary restaurant in 
New York. I certainly got a bargain in this place. The chick- 
ens are a good investment. I can turn their eggs intO' feed 
and at the same time I shall have fresh eggs. I can get all 
the potatoes I want here for fifty cents, delicious potatoes. 
Vegetables are plentiful. Surely, I won't go hungry. 

Supper is ready. Sam is an excellent cook. We have three 
good steaks, potatoes, fine baking powder biscuits, butter, 
bread, eggs, custard and coffee, all cooked well. A good 
start. We lock up the chicks and sit in the parlor and talk, 
"Corbett," Sam and I. I am supposed to be an invalid. 

Sam tells about himself. He was born in Germany — I can't 
seem to lose them — came to America with his father, a God- 
fearing man, as an infant. His family settled in Maine, just 
before the Civil War. I believe it. Sam is thoroughly Ameri- 
canized. He grew up on a farm and became a woodsman, work- 
ing on the farm in the spring and summer and in the woods in 
lumber camps during the winter, cutting down telegraph 
poles. He then went to Massachusetts, where he ran a big 
chicken ranch, the finest in New England. Subsequently he 
sought fortune in the West, went to Port Townsend, where 
he got a large tract of land from the Government — a home- 
stead site — cleared it, built a fine house, got married, raised 
a little family of two and became a widower. Sam went back 
to lumbering; he sometimes acted as a nurse in St. Joseph's 
Hospital, Vancouver, and for twenty years he's been knocking 
around in search of the philosopher's stone. He tried out his 
luck in the Klondike, invested $5,000, lost $3,000 and just 
missed a sixty thousand dollar claim by a few feet. He has 
two boys in the Army now and is proud of them. Sam is a 



120 My Political Trial and Experiences 

high-class man, a most interesting character. He reminds me 
of Cooper's Hawkeye in "The Last of the Mohicans." He 
is a man of the woods who loves the West. He knows every 
inch of the country. I listen to his stories in raptures. I 
certainly have spent the most pleasant evening since I left 
New York. Sam is a "find" and I must keep him at all cost, 
even if I have to give him the ranch. "Corbett" and I retire. 
Sam has a good ear, so we don't talk. We sleep. 

May 21st. Six o'clock. "Breakfast," shouts Sam. I jump 
out of bed, get into my heavy shoes, shirt and overalls. 
Imagine it! They are new. I look like a regular rancher. 
If my wife could only see me now. She'd laugh. We have 
breakfast. Sam is now talking as he works, apologizing for 
the cooking. "Everything isn't very good this morning. 
The stove worked wrong." I praised the cooking, so did 
"Corbett." Sam was pleased. I go out. The sun is rising, 
the sky is clear, the dew is on the grass. The chickens are 
at the gate bidding us good morning and awaiting their 
breakfast. The birds are singing. I take in a deep breath 
of Western air. It stimulates me. I feel a little stronger. 
I love the place and am charmed with it. This is surely 
a most delightful spot and nature has given me on this beauti- 
ful morning a most delightful greeting. If my wife could 
only know. She must be stricken. How shall I get in touch 
with her? "Corbett" will soon return to New York. He'll 
tell her all and she'll be relieved. If I could only get one 
of my boys out here, or my little girl, Gertrude, I'd be the 
happiest man in the world. But no! I am "Jack Wells" now 
and "Jack Wells" I must remain until my country treats 
me justly, until the storms of passion are assuaged and rea- 
son is restored. 

My clients ! What will they say ? The morning newspapers 
have been read, I suppose they printed my picture and under 
it "A fugitive from Justice." The first drama of the war is 
on. I am the first man of Irish blood to go down — the first 
sacrifice. I think of John Mitchell, of Wolfe Tone, of Robert 
Emmet and a score of others. They. were "fugitives from 



Life on a Chicken Farm 121 

justice" too. Wasn't John Mitchell, the grandfather of John 
Purroy Mitchel, friend of Woodrow Wilson's father, received 
in great acclaim in New York in 1854 when he landed there 
a fugitive from British "justice," having escaped from Van 
Dieman's Land? He was sentenced to fourteen years' penal 
servitude. He suffered. Why not I. In every land, in every 
age, men have suffered for ideals, I am no criminal. I abhor 
criminals, and yet here I am, hunted now by the nation I 
love and which I would cheerfully give my life to save. 
Well, let them find the "Irish agitator" now. If they do, I 
hope it will be at a time when my health is improved. Two 
months at this place will make me as strong as a lion. My 
nerves won't be normal but my body will be partially restored. 
We have strawberries that will soon be ripe. All kinds of 
vegetables are in good condition, there is enough to last a year. 
The various fruit trees, although small, are in bearing. I 
see apples, pears, plums, prunes, quinces, but no cherries or 
grapes. I explore the canyon and the woods. The canyon, 
with steep, grassy slopes, has a drop of about 100 feet in 200, 
or about one foot in every two. It affords fine grazing for 
cattle. We have about an acre of stumps, some are big, 
others small. We get our milk and butter from Mr. William- 
son, a sandy-haired neighbor, whose home is within a stone's 
throw of mine. Williamson called this morning. He scrut- 
inized me thoroughly. He talks with a drawl, but is very 
keen. He likes "Corbett" and gives him considerable time 
and attention. He can't talk much with me. I answer "yes" 
and "no" and volunteer nothing. I wish he'd discontinue his 
visits. He gets a Portland paper every day and that's dis- 
couraging. He devotes most of his conversation to the Sagars, 
the recent owners of this ranch. He speaks well of them. In 
a quiet way he is curious about me. I went to a chicken house 
to avoid him. He goes away as quietly as he comes and I 
leave the chicken house. 



V 
HOUSECLEANING. 

"Corbett" goes to Portland for supplies. He returns with 
a load, principally chicken food, and the "Portland Oregonian." 
On the front page of the paper is a story stating that I 
failed to appear for trial in New York. I am called the 
"Irish agitator" and "Irish leader," etc., etc. That's the 
first report from the front, "Corbett" and I discuss it. 

We are pleased with the small space given the matter by 
the "Oregonian." The West won't get excited over that; 
neither shall we. 

May 22nd. I had a good sleep. Up again at six o'clock. 
I rest all day — watch the chickens and rabbits, stroll through 
the woods, do much thinking, and retire about nine o'clock. 

May 23rd. Am still resting and following my usual routine. 
The meals are excellent, Sam is splendid. I am beginning 
to warm up to him a little. 

May 24th. Nothing eventful. Still resting, eating heartily 
and getting stronger. 

May 25th. Nothing of importance. I am in a world of 
no events. Nothing local to complain about, and little to 
boast of. I am breaking in a little in the feeding or the 
pulling of the grass and weeds for the rabbits, the mixing 
of mush for the fowl. "Corbett" and Sam have begun to 
work on several stumps which are in bad spots. I watch 
them and smoke, Sam is a great worker. He can dig, 
chop and use the pick and crowbar with wonderful skill. 
He is a lovable old man. He talks as he works, and is an 
encyclopedia on ever3rthing appertaining to ranching He 
is familiar with the history and habits of every animal, rep- 
tile and bird of the West. He loves work, I love to watch 
him and will soon be able to help him. 

122 



Housecleaning 123 

May 26th. Nothing occurred. "Corbett" made another 
trip to Vancouver and Portland. He exchanged a couple 
crates of eggs on the basis of thirty-five cents a dozen to a 
restaurant keeper at Vancouver for chicken food. 

This is Sunday. We rest and enjoy the day. Towards 
evening the three of us take an automobile ride. We explore 
the country. "Corbett" drives. 

May 27th. "Corbett" is beginning to talk about returning. 
I wish he could stay. We agree that he shall start back on 
Monday, June 3rd — one week from today. We plan ahead. 
We are still removing stumps. I take a hand at digging, 
but I am too weak and my wind is bad. My wound still lets 
me know it is there and I must be careful. We take out 
the beds, give them a thorough renovation, rip up the carpets 
and make the bedrooms sanitary. We paint the bedroom 
furniture a spotless white. "Corbett" paints the roof. The 
house is given a thorough cleaning for the second time. Sam 
still complains about the stove. He has now reached a point 
where he is cursing and swearing about it. He wants more 
pipe on the chimney and asks "Corbett" to fix it. "Corbett" 
ignores the request. 

May 28th. Nothing eventful. Some of the small chickens 
in the brooders are dying. I examine them and find that they 
have little accumulations in their toes which stunt their growth 
and finally kill them. With a knife I remove the trouble 
from eight. In only two instances did I cut into the nail. 
Their toes got so deformed that the poor little things used 
to stand on their toes, which were curled under the bottom 
of their feet. How relieved they look as the balls are re- 
moved. They run and jump like children, and give other 
signs of delight. 

The care of these little chicks requires skill. Their coops 
must be kept clean. I do that. The brooder, a circular 
contrivance with felt curtains and an oil lamp in the centre, 
takes the place of the warm feathers of old Mother Hen. 
It must be kept at a certain temperature. If too hot or cold, 
the chicks die. During the first four or five days I was here, 



124 My Political Trial and Experiences 

two and sometimes three were found dead each morning. This 
past week not one has died. I have done some good anyway, 
conserved hfe, and find that I can keep chickens better than 
the Sagars, under whose care the death rate was great. 
I'll examine the entire outfit for vermin tomorrow. I have 
cleaned their coops thoroughly. Cleanliness is everything 
with chickens. Clean chickens thrive. Those covered with 
vermin get scrawny and are more subject to diseases. Chickens 
are a very interesting study. I am now doing the most 
important war work, according to Hoover. I am producing 
eggs and fowl, and shipping them to Seattle. I'm delighted 
with the work. I hope some of my eggs reach the boys "over 
there." 



VI 

LAMENTS DECAY OF VIRILE AMERICANISM. 

I have always been with the boys. I want them to win. 
If the American soldier gets there he will beat Germany and 
win the war in a short time. Newspapers say he is getting 
there. I hope so. But, according to reports, he is not yet 
in the fighting. I can't believe the newspapers. Who can? 
If their asininity and distortion of facts and suppression of 
truth in the interests of England continue, the American 
people may soon become a nation of cynics, iconoclasts, athe- 
ists. In those moving picture shows at Portland everybody 
applauds. One starts it, the rest join in. They remind me 
of the chickens here, when one starts to cackle the whole 
lot soon joins in the chorus. Each person claps, then looks 
around to see if others are doing the same thing. If you 
don't applaud, you're suspected; if you do, you're a patriot, 
and so it goes. Folks who are sincere and deep don't clap 
their hands at mere twaddle. Those who are shallow, do. 
Genuine applause is good, but the superficial and insincere 
variety is bad; it is too much like the wind that changes 
daily ; it blows one way today, another tomorrow. 

Ranchers in this territory are growing wealthy. I went 
to Vancouver yesterday. On my way back I met a large motor 
truck, loaded with heifers. Two men were on the seat. One 
wore a broad-brimmed hat. He was smoking a big cigar 
and looked prosperous. He wore no coat. The other was 
a driver of the usual type. I was getting some gas as the 
vehicle passed. The garage owner remarked: "That man 
is rich. He made over $200,000.00 on this war. He was only 
an ordinary rancher when it started ; now he's making money 
rapidly. He sells pigs and cattle — heifers and sheep. He's 
now on his way to Portland with a load. He sends four or 

125 



126 My Political Trial and Experiences 

five trucks a day loaded as heavily as the one you've seen 
and he's doing it for the last three years." 

May 29th. Cleaning chicks all day — a dusty, disagreeable 
job. "Corbett" is digging out stumps with Sam. We are all 
busy. 

May 30th. Decoration Day. Our flag is out, I give the 
heroes of '61 a thought. I recall Lincoln's Gettysburg address. 
"Government of the people, by the people, for the people shall 
not perish from the Earth." I hope not. Three of my uncles 
made the supreme sacrifice in the Civil War in defense of 
that principle. During the war of 1812, according to Matthew 
Carey's "Olive Branch" — a book pubHshed in 1819 — the Tories 
of New England actually aided the British troops then way- 
laying our Northern frontier. They opposed the Gallatin 
War Loan, persecuted those who bought bonds, said harsh 
and unjust things about James Madison, ridiculed the war, de- 
manded its cessation ; their State legislatures passed mutinous 
resolutions, and raised "Ned" generally, but nothing hap- 
pened. Madison was too good an American to destroy the 
right of free speech and of a free press. The cause was just 
and being right he knew right would ultimately triumph and 
it did. But now behold how the descendants of those Tories 
treat any man who would "boo" England. "Hang him," 
"Throw him into jail," "Away with him" are the shibboleths 
of their democracy. Now they're gunning for the man who 
follows the teachings of Jefferson and Madison and Lincoln. 
"Government of the people, by the people, for the people" 
is in danger ! See Ireland ! Has Ireland the Democracy Eng- 
land would give Germany? See Egypt, India, South Africa. 
Democracy! Wait and see the end. 

Woe unto him who would demand the freedom of Ireland. 
He's a traitor. The Irish of America are now in France. 
They or their ancestors were driven from Ireland by British 
tyranny which they came here to avoid but which they are 
now called upon to save and to perpetuate. Who can deny 
this? Some day the truth will dawn on the American people. 
We must wait. "Time at last makes all things even," the 



Laments Decay of Virile Americanism 127 

poet says. Ireland has contributed largely to American great- 
ness. How shall America reciprocate? Now is the time to 
compel England to guarantee Ireland's freedom. Were Eng- 
land to issue a proclamation to-morrow declaring Ireland free 
and independent, five hundred thousand of the best fighters on 
earth would spring to her side. What have they to die for now ? 
Nothing but slavery. Would England risk her Empire to 
hold Ireland? It seems so. Does England hate Irishmen 
more than the Germans? It seems so. 

This ranch is a fine place for reflection, it is quiet and 
peaceful where the singing birds, the sighing winds, the bril- 
liant sun, the rippling brook, growing crops and the whole 
scheme of Nature proclaims that God's creatures should be 
free. Just why Americans should now turn against a man 
who has struggled for freedom puzzles me. American his- 
tory and traditions do not justify it, but principles are ob- 
solete, style counts more today than principle and with style 
goes power, wealth and all the vices which brought about the 
decay and final downfall of the Roman Empire. 

"Princes and lords may flourish or may fade. 
A breath can make them as a breath has made ; 
But a bold peasantry, their country's pride, 
When once destroyed, can never be supplied." 

A great many like to recite this verse of Goldsmith's, millions 
know it, but how many follow its warnings? I cannot help 
recalling the fact that the father of Woodrow Wilson and 
the kin of the Southern bureaucrats and Bourbons in Wash- 
ington who have driven me from my loved ones were enemies 
of Lincoln and the boys in blue, whose memories we cele- 
brate today. In the name of "J^ck Wells," my alias, I salute 
you, Abraham Lincoln! In my office in New York is your 
death mask, one of my proudest possessions. A death mask 
of Grant — an original — a plaque of Washington, an original 
water color of Robert Emmet by Mulvaney, the Irishman 
who painted "Sheridan's Ride" and "Custer's Last Fight," 
masterpieces of their kind — are also on the wall. I went to 



128 My Political Trial and Experiences 

much trouble to get them. I could not disregard the teach- 
ings and admonitions of these sterling Americans. 

Well, old Sol has gone down, and I'm done celebrating 
for the nonce. I've paraded on many Decoration Days with 
the old Sixty-Ninth. One day I caught a runaway horse 
with a 12th Regiment officer hanging on his neck, almost in 
front of the reviewing stand on Riverside Drive, in New 
York, where Governor Hughes was reviewing the parade. 
The crowd cheered, but my name being "O'Leary," the in- 
cident was ignored by the press. I also saved a half dozen of 
our men who were marching with their backs to the plung- 
ing, frightened beast. The boys knew it and I was satisfied. 
One of them — "Dick" Allen is an officer in France now. He 
and the other boys who were on the left wing of the Company 
that day will remember. Those were good old days. I wish 
I were with the boys now. And yet, perhaps, I can do as 
much effective work here. 



VII 

THE AUTOCRAT OF THE BREAKFAST TABLE. 

May 31st. Cleaning out chicken houses today. The chicks 
are beginning to look better, cleaner, healthier and stronger. 
"Corbett" had the car repaired. It is acting badly. We got 
"stuck" on that Ford contraption, but our losses on the car 
are offset by gains on the ranch. 

Today we had our first real trouble, "Corbett" failed to get 
a few lengths for the chimney. We awoke to find Sam swear- 
ing and cursing the stove. He served breakfast. "Corbett" 
criticised the griddle cakes and told Sam that the eggs were 
"cooked too hard." "Corbett" again asked, "What's the mat- 
ter this morning?" Sam lost his temper, and bolted for his 
bedroom. "I'm going away," he said; "I won't work here. 
I told you to fix that stove and you didn't. When I say a 
thing I mean it. Now, I am going to go." Explanations were 
useless. "Look and think" said I to "Corbett," "we are in a 
hole; you're going away Monday and I'll be here alone." I 
followed Sam and tried to reason with him. My efforts were 
futile. He was bent upon going. He dressed quickly. I of- 
fered to drive him to Portland. He spurned my offer. I asked 
him to finish his breakfast. He wouldn't. I urged him to 
wait for the stage and got "no" for an answer. I offered to 
increase his wages. He wanted no raise. I tendered him his 
salary to date. He refused to take it. I left $15 on his dresser. 
I scolded "Corbett" and called him careless and inconsiderate 
— but it didn't work. I told Sam we would soon be alone and 
could get along together. I was "all right," but "Corb£tt" 
owned the ranch and Sam wouldn't work for him. "Corbett" 
apologized, but Sam refused to be placated. He finally said 
that he would find work in the neighborhood. I told him to 
return if he couldn't and that I would stand by him. I gave 
"Corbett" a tongue lashing in his hearing but it had no effect 

129 



130 My Political Trial and Experiences 

upon Sam, who left with a cold "Good-bye." I accompanied 
him to the gate and finally said, "Well, Sam, won't you shake 
hands with me ? We always got along well together. I want 
to wish you luck. You can never tell when we may meet 
again, and we might just as well part as friends." This touched 
him. He grasped my hand and his eye grew moist. Again I 
pressed him to take some money. "I didn't stay my month 
and I ain't entitled to any," he replied. "I ain't much on re- 
ligion, but when I make a contract and break it, I ain't entitled 
to a cent." I finally told him that I was the boss and not 
"Corbett" and that it was I he was hurting, that I wanted him, 
and that I'd take care of "Corbett" in my own way. He hesi- 
tated for a moment. I then said, "Corbett will leave here Mon- 
day. Come back when he's gone." Sam would not promise 
and went away. 

"There is a strong character," said I, returning much discour- 
aged to the house. I was provoked at "Corbett." I liked Sam. 
He was a fine old man, a valuable aide for me. He was a father, 
brother and friend all in one. He taught me more about nature 
than I ever knew before. He knew all about the weeds, vegeta- 
tion, reptiles, animals, trees, soil and peculiarities of the West, 
and I learned much from him. If a man attended the Agri- 
cultural School at Ann Arbor for a year he couldn't acquire 
more practical ranch knowledge than I received in two weeks 
from Sam. Besides, he was a good companion. He killed 
time for me. He knew I was interested and he talked to me. 
He told stories of bears, of mountain lions, talked about Oregon 
and Maine, wolf stories, anecdotes of the plains, the woods, 
boundary fights with neighbors, and arguments about the war ; 
what a shame it is to lose him. I'd give anything to get him 
back. A free man is Sam, true and independent, as I would 
like America to be. Although a German, he is full of spirit. 
He was anxious that the United States win the war, but loathed 
the newspapers. He disliked being dubbed a "Hun" and a 
"Boche." He declared that calling names is not fighting and 
that the German-Americans were as good as other Americans. 
In a frank manly way he outlined his pre-war feelings to me, 



The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table 131 

related insults he had received because his name was "Stine." 
The brave fellow stood his ground. I sympathized with him. 

I told Sam that I didn't think England was a true friend of 
America, and related some history. I really think he thought 
he was converting me. He liked an open, honest, fair man. 
Twenty times he swore he'd die for the flag and pointed with 
pride at his boys who represented him. What more could 
America ask than this ? Where in American history can a finer 
spirit be found ? The German- Americans are in a very difficult 
position. What an outrage it is to assail them, when they are 
so willing to follow. We'll regret the torture meted out to 
them in these days of fanaticism ; they will retaliate the perse- 
cution they are undergoing, and the insults heaped upon them 
are the fruits of British propaganda that countenances misin- 
forming and misdirecting Americans. 

"Well, Corbett," I remarked, *'you have driven Sam away. 
You'll have to bring me another man, and be quick about it. 
Today is Friday. If you are going on Monday, you must 
hurry to Portland and bring me a man at any cost. I can't 
stay here alone. I haven't the strength, and I know very little 
about the business." It was now ten o'clock, and in a few 
minutes "Corbett" jumped into the flivver and was off. 

I feed the stock, and at one o'clock I get dinner. I'm alone. 
What a different story now, with Sam away. I don't like soli- 
tude. The Irish temperament revels in pleasant company. I 
heard a step on the porch. There is Sam. I am overjoyed. 
Poor fellow, he is weak. "Give me some water quick," he 
said. I jumped to the pump. "Come, Sam, sit down and rest 
yourself. You're as welcome here as the flowers in May," I 
remark. I get him a cup of coffee. He tells me he has been 
walking every minute for the past four hours, that he went 
to every ranch within a radius of three miles and could get 
neither a job nor a meal. He is glad to get a drink of coffee, 
and I exacted a promise from him to wait until I prepare a 
meal for him. I am now working for Sam, and soon will have 
a good meal ready. He watches me intently and seems pleased. 

I was delighted over Sam's return and told him so. I offered 



132 My Political Trial and Experiences 

to put him up until he felt ready to return to Portland. He 
could regard himself as my guest and rest. He had been 
working hard and needed a vacation. I asked him as a favor 
to take the money I offered him before going away. I told 
him "Corbett" had gone to Portland for another man and 
would soon return. In a few minutes Sam became loquacious. 
He said, "I'll stay with you Jack until you say go." I shook 
hands with him and remarked, "I'll never say go, Sam. You 
can have a good home here. It will be as much yours as 
mine. We can get along together." He confessed he knew 
that, pulled off his coat and got into his working clothes. I 
wouldn't allow him to work and induced him to rest. He re- 
luctantly yielded. Soon afterward "Corbett" returned with a 
man. I told him that Sam was back. He was glad, but dis- 
inclined to discuss the incident. He had some stove pipe and I 
put it up. Sam was right. The pipe settled all the trouble 
with the stove. Subsequently Sam cooked everything well, 
and his troubles were over. I sent the newcomer away after 
paying his expenses and compensating him for the time spent 
in coming here. 



VIII 
CLOUDS BEGIN TO GATHER. 

"Corbett" brought back a paper which carried my picture on 
a prominent page. Detectives were looking for me. He also 
had a copy of a New York paper with more news. Govern- 
ment agents were investigating. They might just as well ask 
an Egyptian mummy as anybody in New York where I was, 
because when I left New York nobody except "Corbett" had 
any knowledge of my departure. If none knew, none could tell. 
Even my wife did not know of my change of plans. As 
for my relatives, they must worry with the rest and wait. 
I now realized that Lyons was "in for it" on his return 
and told him so. He said that he would be ready. "Don't 
worry about me," he remarked. "They'll never know 
your whereabouts from me." I wanted him to stay and get 
work in Portland in the ship-yard but he wouldn't listen 
to such a thing. "I must return" he said. "I am going back." 
"You can't resist them," I insisted. "I can resist anybody," 
he replied. I had different notions. My best judgment told 
me differently. But Lyons was headstrong. He was very 
restless. He had changed during the last two or three days. 
I disliked his restless spirit. No one could control him in such 
moods. I can see now how sometimes in emergencies it re- 
quires strong methods to control men where nerve, patience 
and courage are required. Lyons has no deep convictions, no 
ideals. He sympathizes with me. He knows I am just. To 
him I am an object of pity and nothing more. He can't bother 
with me any longer. I realize that now. Yet in my office he 
was a hard, faithful worker and I try to understand him. 

June 2nd. Sunday. "Corbett" leaves for the East tomor- 
row. A day of rest is a day of reflection. Lyons' departure 
throws a picture on my mind radically different from my 

133 



134 My Political Trial and Experiences 

present environment. A picture of home. I'm beset with a 
thousand temptations to return. I cannot. I have cut my 
bridges behind me. Were I to step on a train I would be ar- 
rested. I can't go but I can think. I talk to "Corbett." I 
ask him to tell my wife that I am well and strong; that two 
weeks under the sun and in the air have given me much 
strength, not to worry ; that the wealth of the soil is mine and 
that with old Sam I am happy here. I warn him, however, to 
keep my whereabouts a secret from her ; to carry back nothing, 
to write no letter or leave any trace of the direction he came 
from. I cautioned him to discuss no objects of interest he 
might see on the way. I warned him and swore him to 
secrecy; not to tell John and urged that no one but himself 
must know in what part of the world I am. He promised. 

"Corbett" looks well after his two weeks of rest. He has a 
good color and is strong. He lifted a hundred pound bag of 
bran yesterday and threw it about ten feet as though it was 
a rubber ball. He likes the country, but, like most men born 
and raised in New York, he would die here. Farm life to such 
people is a curiosity for a while. As long as it remains so 
they'll stay, but very soon it begins to bore them, and things of 
nature become monotonous as the city beckons them to return. 
I have had and shall have no such feelings. I am concerned 
about my family. If I could have them here I would ask for 
nothing else; I would be supremely happy. I am as anxious 
about them as they are about me. I want them as I know they 
want me. They'll hear from me but I won't hear from them. 
They are among friends while I am among strangers. They 
have some consolation. I have none except the great sacrifice 
I'm making for my convictions. That thought buoys me up 
and gives me hope and strength. I have done no wrong. I 
have struggled for the right as God has given me the light to 
see the right, and now I am engaged in a sacred undertaking ; 
saving my country from the stigma of injustice. There are 
men seeking me with frothing mouths and frenzied passions. 
They would make themselves heroes at my expense. They 
offer $250 reward for information leading to my capture. 



Clouds Begin to Gather 135 

They would use the people as a posse to hunt down an Irish- 
American, true to the best that is in him. That's a big thing 
to fight against. If my family must suffer I hope they'll suf- 
fer bravely, that they'll hold up their heads, proud of the fact 
that they are of good old Irish stock that knows how to endure 
suffering and privation when the tyrant that drove them here 
has laid a heavy hand upon them again in a land where they 
thought injustice could not flourish. 

June 3rd. Lyons left tonight. He arranged for transpor- 
tation over the Southern route to New York on a train leaving 
at midnight. I give him $250. All I have left now is about six 
hundred dollars and $250 in liberty bonds. I drive him to Port- 
land. We leave the ranch together about six o'clock. He bids 
Sam Stine good-bye, telling him, "I'll be back in about one 
month." Sam was glad to see him go. "Corbett" is rough. 
Sam wants to be treated "like a gentleman" and "wouldn't 
stay five minutes with anybody who didn't treat me that way." 
We drive out through the old gate. Sam opens it and lets us 
through, closing it again, as he waves good-bye. Lyons takes 
a last look at the ranch, and waves good-bye to our neighbor 
Williamson, the Seventh Day Adventist. We bumped over 
the rough lane which leads to the main road and soon we are 
on it, the old Ford spinning around its turns and over its ruts 
at about twenty miles an hour. The sun had just gone down 
but it is still shining on the top of Mount Hood whose snowy 
summit glistens brilliantly in the east about thirty-five miles 
away. This is the most exquisite part of the day. A cool 
breeze blows gently from the West and we forget the heat of 
the day. We are silent. We bump along and ride about seven 
or eight miles without a word. We reach the crest of the long 
grade at the bottom of which is Vancouver from which we can 
see the Columbia winding its way east and north; also Port- 
land itself. At the suggestion of Lyons, I stop the car on the 
side of a wood and for a few moments we gaze on the two 
cities beneath us. Lyons breaks the silence and we begin to 
talk, speculating about what was happening in New York. 

It is getting late and I am worried about the car which has 



136 My Political Trial and Experiences 

been acting badly so I tell Lyons he had better start and that 
I'll drive him to Vancouver whence he can get a trolley car to 
Portland. He persuades me much against my will to drive 
to Portland itself which I do. We arrive in Portland and 
drive about to kill time. I leave Lyons about 10 o'clock. 
While waiting for him to get his tickets a man stands on the 
curb in front of the car and stares at me suspiciously. I may 
look like a suspicious character. I wear a cap such as a rancher 
who owns a Ford might have, also a khaki shirt. Otherwise 
there is nothing unusual about my attire. I smoke my pipe 
without any appearance of concern, but he continued to observe 
me. Maybe he thinks I might give him a ride. Lyons returns 
in about a half hour and the stranger seeing him ceases his 
unwelcome attention. 

About 10 o'clock I took leave of Lyons. I shook hands and 
my last words to him were to tell my wife and family not to 
worry, that I'd be back soon. I started the old flivver and 
before long was sailing back to the ranch on two cylinders, two 
others having refused to function, much to my chagrin. On my 
way through East Portland I was almost arrested for speed- 
ing. Two policemen blocked my path but I dodged between 
them and continued on my way despite their shouts to stop. 
Imagine a Ford speeding on two cylinders ! It was down grade 
and Fords can speed downward. A car trailing behind was 
caught and I was saved some very embarrassing moments, per- 
haps arrest. Had I stopped, I'd have been in a bad position 
because I had no means of identification, no card and per- 
haps they would have held me on suspicion of having pur- 
loined the automobile. 

When I got to the bridge which spans the Columbia River 
at Vancouver I almost got heart failure. While buying a toll 
ticket, I was approached by five men, one of whom held a lan- 
tern up to my face. Two were uniformed policemen, one was 
a soldier and another the regular toll collector; the fifth wore 
civilian clothes. The man with the lamp scrutinized me care- 
fully. Undaunted I asked unconcernedly, "What the matter, 
boys? Someone steal a car?" "No, we're just looking for 



Clouds Begin to Gather 137 

someone" answered one. "Well, I hope you'll catch him," I 
replied, as I was told to "go ahead." "Good-night" said the 
man in civilian attire. "Good-night boys," I replied and was 
off on my two cylinders as fast as they could carry me. A 
very close shave, I thought as my old Ford sputtered and back- 
fired until some soldiers on the sidewalk of Vancouver laughed 
and shouted, "sounds like a rapid fire gun, old pal." It seemed 
as thought the automobile was making every effort to attract 
the attention bestowed on me from all sides. 

I passed through Vancouver and finally got to the foot of the 
last hill which leads to the ranch where I found Sam with Will- 
iamson, my neighbor, waiting with a lantern. Sam was wor- 
ried. It was now almost 12 o'clock ; I had been over two hours 
running about 12 miles, and twelve o'clock in the country seems 
like two in the morning. After much fussing and aided by 
Sam and Williamson who pushed while I worked the motor, 
I backed the car up the hill. While doing so, I almost ran over 
Sam. His yelling saved him for I stopped the car just in time 
to save him from being crushed under it. He had stepped off 
the road in his efforts and fell in the path of the wheel. 

I couldn't sleep, thinking of home and of Lyons and worry- 
ing about him and his arrival in New York. I was now alone 
and must shift for myself. I felt it keenly. Sam might or 
might not stay. I had $600 left, my ranch, about six hundred 
chickens and hens, fifty rabbits, my Ford — the worst ever made 
— delicious strawberries ripening, fruit on the trees, crops in the 
ground, fairly well-equipped place for good wholesome food, a 
good healthy life, rest and plenty to do. My chief task in- 
volved the car which I was determined to get in running order 
if it took all summer. Thinking of home and what was going 
on there occupied my mind. I finally went to sleep. 

June 4th. At six-thirty Sam announced "breakfast ready !" 
I got up, fed the chickens, ate my breakfast, fed the rabbits, 
smoked, helped Sam to pull up some stumps and resolved to 
move the chicken and rabbit houses over the side of the hill. 
They were in front of the house and spoiled the view. Im- 
provements meant preoccupation. Williamson came around 



138 My Political Trial and Experiences 

with the milk and talked for half an hour. He's very talkative. 
He wants me to go to his church and says the preacher is good. 
When told that I don't believe in churches, he broaches the mat- 
ter from another angle — "it's a good chance to meet the folks 
around." I don't want to meet any "folks around." They're 
too friendly and entirely too anxious to meet me. I tell him, 
"I ain't stuck on meeting people. It's because I dislike people 
that I'm on the ranch." Sam doesn't like Williamson and 
agrees with me. He never asks Sam to go to church. Sam 
swears like a negro mule driver and Williamson doesn't. Sam 
anathemizes churches and priests and hates ministers worse. 
His religion is, "I never done any harm to no man and I don't 
like to go to church ; churches are for sinners, and I don't like 
to associate with sinners." And Sam is no sinner. He works 
hard, cooks well and earns his money better than any female 
cook I ever met. Three desserts are pretty good for a cook 
and he has set them up frequently. Williamson went home 
about 8 o'clock. He likes to visit me. I don't blame him. 
He's alone. His family is away and I make his visits interest- 
ing. Sam is loquacious. He knows every inch of the North- 
west and as a rancher towers above Williamson in experience 
and knowledge. In moments of anger or impatience, Sam's 
vocabulary is rich in adjectivial blasphemy, and his cursing is a 
model of brevity and clearness. He has no- patience with 
"weasel words" or hypocrisy. He growls at Williamson and 
is unsparing in his contradiction of that churchman's asser- 
tions and contemptuous of his conclusions. 

June 5th. I've been thinking of Lyons all day. He must 
be in San Francisco now. I envy him for one thing. Barring 
Havana, the best days I ever enjoyed were in San Francisco. 
I recall the week I spent there last January, the warm recep- 
tion I received, the quiet dinner at the St, Francis Hotel, and 
the priests and others there. I recall Daniel O'Connell, an 
open hearted fellow and his beautiful home. He was out on 
bail, his case having been appealed, and awaiting the call to 
serve fourteen years in prison under the espionage law. What 
a shame ! I recall Capt. Waters, John Henegan and many others, 



Clouds Begin to Gather 139 

any of whom would be glad to hide me. Do they dream I 
am out here? Do they realize that I was enticed here by the 
wonderful sunny days I spent in their city where, in the midst 
of winter with the East snow-bound and perishing with the 
cold, I walked about the streets without an overcoat. I wish 
the folks East could feel the climate of the Pacific slope. 
Many of them would come here. I recall an automobile trip 
when Fathers Meagher and Doyle of New York drove me 
around the country. I suppose the government pack has been 
down there hunting me. 

Moved a chicken house today. Sam is a good house mover. 
He knows how to run the rollers. He swears enough to move 
any brick building. He gives me orders after the manner of 

a regular foreman and gladly I obey. "Hold her ! Hold 

her ! Look out, the thing is going down the hill." Not 

on your life. She can never pass me except over my lifeless 
form. A good strong maple sapling did the work of a crow- 
bar. The worst job was chasing the chickens into their new 
home. About one hundred and fifty of the worst imps alive 
gave us lots of trouble. We moved their house only a hun- 
dred feet away. They saw what we did and where it went, 
but that didn't matter. When evening came, they gathered 
on the site of the former house and huddled together. Poor 
things! It's terrible to have no home. They acted just like 
innocent little children whose home was destroyed. They 
gathered about its ruins. Where else could they go ? Chickens 
are human after all. It made me think of the poor little chil- 
dren in Belgium and France. They must have huddled on the 
sites of their ruined homes as inconsolable as these chickens did 
on theirs. I finally got them to their old home in a new 
locality much against their will. Sam and I chased them and 
swore at them, used sticks, newspapers, yelled and ran; they 
showed some speed and indicated that they had no terminal 
facilities. They couldn't understand it, that's all. When 
darkness came, they'd run into the wire netting, — one actually 
hung itself, but I saved its life just in time. Another stunned 
itself as it ran pell mell into an outhouse. Even the rabbits 



140 My Political Trial and Experiences 

seemed to enjoy the fun and chased them. After two hours of 
strenuous work during which we had to corner and catch most 
of them, we got them in and closed the slide for the night. Sam 
was exasperated and fatigued. "Never spent such a day," he 
said, "never!" Neither did I. I gave him mental as well 
as physical relief by stories about a young rooster I was watch- 
ing the night before. Soon afterward he then began to tell 
me tales. Sam was content again. 

While thus engaged, I heard the sound of footsteps outside. 
It was nine o'clock and bedtime. Who could be prowling about 
at this hour? Then came a knock. "Come in" I yelled like a 
real rancher. In response to my invitation a stalwart man 
about fifty years of age entered. My heart palpitated a little. 
What could be his mission here ? "Good evening, gentlemen," 
he began. "I'm of the Red Cross for this district. I was 
wondering whether you'd help the boys." "Sure !" Sam had 
two boys in the army and he "dug down," and pulled up fifty 
cents. I told him to keep it and gave $5 to the stranger. 
"That's good" he said. I then handed him $2 more for Sam. 
"Seven dollars from one house is good" he chuckled. "How 
much did Williamson give?" asked Sam. "Fifty cents" re- 
plied the collector. "There, didn't I tell you," said Sam. 

"I told yer the kind of a man he is — Stingy as h , and 

always talking about the Germans and the like." I came to 
Williamson's rescue with the remark, "perhaps he hasn't very 
much, Sam." A look of reproach settled over Sam's counte- 
nance. "He's got over a hundred acres here and he's pretty 
well fixed, but he don't care about the boys." "He has a boy 
in the army, Sam," I ventured and perhaps he feels he's given 
enough." "Well," broke in the collector as he handed each of 
us buttons and receipts for the money, "the people around here 
never give very much. Fifty cents or one dollar is as much 
as they can spare." 

I saw at once that the collector was a German-American, so 
I decided to have some fun. "Are there many pro-Germans 
around here," I asked. "A few, but they're careful," he re- 
plied. "They ought to hang some of th.em," I remarked watch- 



Clouds Begin to Gather 141 

ing the collector closely. "Well, the people here are sensible," 
he explained. "How are the Boches getting along?" was my 
next question as I winked at Sam who disliked the word 
"Boche." "Well, they're doing well, it seems.* They're strong 
yet," he answered. "They ought to drive all these Germans 
out of the country. They're not loyal," I suggested. "We've 
got to be careful about them," was his response and with that 
he left. There was a typical German- American. He was do- 
ing patriotic war work and yet he dared not defend even his 
own people here. He allowed me to call the Germans "boches," 
and to recommend their deportation without protest or any 
show of disapproval. He undoubtedly thought that since my 
name was "Wells" I was of English extraction, and let me 
master him. When will the German-Americans develop moral 
courage enough to defend themselves so as to better protect 
themselves? A true American would resent the uncompli- 
mentary allusions I made to the German soldiers, because all 
real Americans admire a man with convictions and the courage 
to defend them even though they differ from their own. 

June 6th. I was treated to a pleasant and unexpected sur- 
prise today. A little boy about seven years of age called on 
me. He had blue eyes and a sweet dimpled face; walking up 
to me he said, "Say Mr. Wells can I see your rabbits ?" "Sure." 
What wouldn't I have given if that was one of my boys, Robert 
or Gerald ? I put my arm around him and asked "what's your 
name ?" " 'Joe' O'Leary" he answered. I almost fainted. 
"Joe O'Leary?" I gasped. "Sure, Joe, I'll show you the rab- 
bits." Suiting the action to the words, I lifted the youngster 
on my shoulders and carried him into the rabbit house where I 
had some beauties. Flemish giants they were called, and 
many attractive young ones. I made a great fuss over Joe. 
What a strange coincidence ! How small the world is and yet, 
I thought, how big the O'Leary clan is. I laughed and patted 
my little visitor as though he was one of my own boys. I'd 
have given Joe the ranch had he asked for it. He spent con- 
siderable time with me and the rabbits and seemed to enjoy our 
society. When he was about to go, I picked out a couple 

♦At this time the Germans were pushing forward at Chateau-Thierry. 



142 My Political Trial and Experiences 

of dandy rabbits, got a box, and much to Joe's surprise pre- 
sented him with a pair. "Jc>e" couldn't understand. He was 
overjoyed, but not half as much as I was to meet "Joe" O'Leary 
and have him walk in on me as suddenly as he did. "Joe" left 
happy, but I felt sad when he went away. 

"Joe" O'Leary's rabbits made me quite popular. To-day I 
was besieged by boys from ranches in the neighborhood and 
even distant points. "Won't you please give me a rabbit, Mr. 
Wells ?" "Can't boys" I reply. "They are worth twenty cents 
a pound." "You gave Joe O'Leary a pair." "Oh ! I just did 
that for Joe. I can't give any more away." Before darkness 
set in, I had sold twelve rabbits and counted about eight dol- 
lars for the advertising which "Joe" O'Leary gave me. I hated 
to sell rabbits to those boys. I felt reluctant to take their 
money. I was a boy myself and liked bunnies and here were 
these poor boys just as fond of rabbits as I used to be. In my 
heart I wanted them to have them. Giving them for nothing 
however, would have attracted too much attention, so I had to 
be hard on myself as well as the boys. However, I enjoyed the 
experience. Imagine it ! A lawyer and editor, etc., etc., sell- 
ing rabbits ! I had lots of fun with them and enjoyed myself 
immensely. I wanted to get rid of the rabbits anyway. I 
might keep a pair, but fifty were too many, and I would rather 
sell them to the boys as pets at nominal prices than send them 
to the market to be killed. I turned all my growing rabbits 
loose. The ranch was surrounded by a wire fence which re- 
stricted their liberty. It occurred to me that they might just 
as well be free. I don't believe in keeping rabbits caged. 
They are as much entitled to freedom as human beings or cattle. 
If they get out, all right; if they don't well and good. I'll 
feel better seeing them about the place. Had I not presented 
those two to "Joe" O'Leary, I wouldn't have sold one. Gen- 
erosity is frequently rewarded. It pays in business to give 
something away occasionally. I've learned something about 
business. 

June 8th. The strawberries are ripe today and Sam ad- 
vises picking. I went to a grocery store and got jars, rubbers, 



Clouds Begin to Gather 143 

caps, sugar, and other supplies. Tomorrow Sam and I will 
commence canning. We finished moving all the chicken 
houses and tore down the rabbit hutches in front of the house 
thus leaving us a better view. What induced Sagar to place 
these buildings in front of his home would puzzle any one 
outside of a nursery. We removed them to the hill where the 
chickens can get a better run and more to eat. I accommodated 
four setting hens today, each with twelve eggs. They seemed 
glad to get an opportunity to show what good mothers they 
are. Five others less fortunate, I housed off and am feeding 
them only once a day. I'd like to set them on eggs but five 
are sufficient. I don't like incubators. I'd rather see an old 
mother hen clucking about. It's more interesting. I sold 
several rabbits again today. "Joe" O'Leary is certainly ad- 
vertising my stock. Every boy now wants rabbits because 
"Joe" O'Leary has set the style. 



IX 

A STRANGER AMONG HIS OWN. 

Joe's visit has inspired me to ask questions about my neigh- 
bors. On the hill to the west is a fine white house with a wind- 
mill and a painted roof, a splendid barn and well kept property, 
the only prosperous looking ranch house in this vicinity. 
Down the road towards Vancouver is another ranch with chil- 
dren about. It's a busy looking place. I sometimes hear the 
merry voices of children through the woods to the rear of 
the dwelling. I asked Williamson who owned the place, and 
to my astonishment he answers, "O'Leary." "What kind of a 
man is he?" I inquired, "He's an Irishman and a pretty good 
one, but they say he has no use for England. He has a big 
family and one of his children lives over there," indicating 
the busy-looking place up the road whence I've heard chil- 
dren's voices. "There are a great many O'Leary's around here," 
he continued. "More than you think," I soliloquized. I won- 
der what the O'Leary yonder would think if he knew another 
branch of the family is so near. That's another sting that 
hurts. I'd like to drop in and visit the O'Learys, but I can- 
not. They'd know my face. Perhaps they've seen my picture 
in the papers, and being interested in the name, would remem- 
ber me more than men of different cognomens. Such is the 
fate of a fugitive from injustice. He has desires which he 
must suppress even in solitude. 

While in Portland, I was anxious to call on a cousin, Daniel 
Buckley. His son was a student in Columbia University*, when 
the war broke out. I met him several times there. I also 
met his grandfather, Michael Buckley, in Glens Falls. Mr. 
Buckley was a fine, stalwart Irishman who settled in Minne- 
sota years ago, cleared eighty acres, raised a splendid family, 
which is now doing its share building up the golden west. 
During my stay in Portland, I walked past my cousin's house 

'New Tork. 144 



A Stranger Among His Own 145 

twice and looked in hoping to see their faces. I felt like 
Tennyson's Enoch Arden who came home from sea after a 
departure of years, and peeped through the windows of his 
home to find his wife — who thought him dead — happy with 
another husband and children playing about her. Like him, 
I had to go away from my own kin, although I know they 
would have given much to see me. Such is the irony of fate. 
Such are war's heartaches, tragedies and romances. With 
the O'Leary tribe all about me here, I must masquerade under 
the "nom de plume" of an Englishman. Well, I'll try and be 
a better Englishman than many of my acquaintances. I'll 
make "Jack" Wells represent the spirit of '76 as many a good 
Wells did during the American Revolution. 

June 9th. Sunday. Another day of rest and thoughts of 
home. Sam and I rested, smoked and talked. We agreed to 
go to Vancouver for a ride towards evening. I worked on 
the car yesterday endeavoring to make some needed repairs. 

I'm thinking of Lyons and wondering where he is. He 
should be near home now. What will he do when he gets 
there? Something tells me he'll tell where I am. They are 
rough in New York and will break him down. The sym- 
pathy of Southern politicians and federal office holders are 
with everything real Americans oppose and "evil communica- 
tions corrupt good manners." Sam and I drive to Vancouver. 
The car runs well for the first time. We take our usual grand 
stand seat in the Ford by the curb and watch the crowds. 
We return about 10 o'clock, stop at the crossroads and get a 
drink of soda, I buy some candy to give "Joe" O'Leary if 
he calls again. I borrow a newspaper and start back. Sam 
and I read about half an hour, and then go to bed. "O'Leary 
indicted for treason," was one of the feature news items 
which the newspaper carried. Pleasant! Indicted with seven 
others ! Who are they ? The article doesn't say, but it asserts 
that the whole country is looking for me. I take the paper 
to my bedroom and reflect. What have they framed up now? 
Treason! That's an ugly word. It can't be true. It means 
death. But wait. I jumped my bail and they are taking 



146 My Political Trial and Experiences 

advantage of my position to make me infamous. Elsewhere 
I see that DeValera and the Sinn Fein Leaders in Ireland 
are arrested and that Lloyd George said in Parliament that 
evidence of a "German Plot" has been furnished to the Brit- 
ish Government by "a friendly foreign power." The whole 
thing is now clear to me. My indictment for treason in Amer- 
ica is England's excuse or justification for the arrest of the 
leaders in Ireland. Very clever ! But it won't succeed. There 
is no "German plot." There never was any. I couldn't be a 
party to a German plot if I tried to, nor could I say a word 
or lift a hand against the United States, a country I love and 
would die for. Never ! What is best for me to do ? Go back 
and face my accusers? Am I powerful, rich, healthy and 
strong enough to do it? Is there any justice left in New York 
to give me a square deal? Have they dared to go so far as 
to charge a man of Irish blood with treason to gratify England 
and to attempt to destroy the affection the people of America 
hold and have ever held for dear old Ireland? It seems so. 
What fools they are ! They can't succeed. Truth will triumph 
and Ireland will triumph over them all. Such are my thoughts 
as I go to sleep after asking God for strength and guidance. 
God help my family now ! They'll be persecuted to death by 
poisoned tongues, patriots for revenue only, hypocrites, liars 
and idiots. These are dark and evil days — the blackest and 
most menacing America has yet known. The press is the 
black cat among us. It has deceived the big-hearted, credu- 
lous American people until they are willing to believe that 
a man of Irish blood could be false to America. The corrup- 
tion of the press is one of the worst legacies which the war 
will leave us. 

June 10th. Picked over a hundred quarts of fine, big, ripe 
strawberries, and Sam preserved them. Sam and I also 
changed some of our wire fences about. Planting posts and 
stretching wire was a hard task for me. My hands are blistered. 
We did a good job. I sold more rabbits and took 48 dozen 
eggs to market where they brought thirty-five cents a dozen. 
The money was used to purchase feed for the chickens. 



A Stranger Among His Own 147 

June 11th. Picked more strawberries. Sam canned them. 
Sam is a wonderful cook. Today I found some old lamp 
burners covered with verdigris and black with age. I was 
going to destroy them but Sam told me that they were as good 
as new. He had beans on the stove boiling". He drew off the 
water, put the burners in it and about five minutes they were 
as bright as new. I was astonished. Sam explained that 
bean water was so poisonous that it ate all the tarnish off brass. 
Poison in harmless beans ! Who'd ever think of such a thing? 
I learned how to set and file saws today. Our supply of wood 
is getting low and we must chop and cut some. Sam examined 
my work and pronounced it excellent, much to my delight. 
We have about ten large and small saws of all kinds and types 
on the place. Sam wants me to put them in shape. We have 
made many improvements on the ranch, every one of which 
makes it easier to manage. Soon it will be the model ranch 
of this section. I have dreams of buying some more land and 
becoming a real rancher, a real westerner. Sam, Williamson 
and myself took a drive tonight. The old car went bad again. 
An auto full of men followed us and I'm puzzled. We stopped 
and they drove up a side road. Their lights went out. Later, 
I heard a car behind us. They were following us without 
lights — very suspicious circumstance. 

A very strange thing happened at supper tonight, William- 
son came in, sat down, handed me a copy of the Portland 
"Journal" with my picture on the front page. I thought I'd 
die. "I thought you might like to read. Jack," he muttered. 
Did Williamson know me? I took the paper, looked at my 
own picture, and remarked, — "That fellow O'Leary they're 
looking for must be in the States somewhere." "No," said 
Williamson, "he went to Mexico." This reply gave me reason 
to believe that my caller hadn't identified me. Sam was sitting 
there, eating silently. I turned the paper over, went into my 
bedroom, hid the outside page under my pillow, came out with 
the rest and put it on the table. I then asked Williamson to 
come outside to help m^e with the car. The pack must be 
closing in when a rancher in Washington will present you with 



148 My Political Trial and Experiences 

your picture at your own table, while the whole country is 
looking for you. I am troubled tonight. I feel that some- 
thing is wrong. Lyons is home by this tinie. Has he been 
arrested ? Has he told all he knows ? These are the musings 
that trouble me most and yet I sleep. 



$250.00 REWARD 



WANTED 



Arrest on sight and notify by wire United States Marshal Thomas D. 
McCarthy, Federal Building, New York City (Telephone number Cort- 
landt 1195); or Charles DeWoody, Department of Justice, Park Row Build- 
ing, New York City (Telephone number Barclay 8160) : 

JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY 




Photo, Co-Operative Press. 

Jeremiah A. O'Leary is under indictment in the United States Court 
for the Southern District of New York, for a violation of Sections 3 and 
4 of Title I. of the Espionage Act. He forfeited his bond on May 20, 
1918; bi nch warrant issued and is now in the hands of the United States 
Marshal for the Southern District of New York. 

O'Leary is one of the best known Irish leaders in the United States, 
known in all Sinn Fein and rabid Irish circles, and known personally by 
all prominent leaders of the Sinn Fein movement. He is President of the 
American Truth Society and publisher of THE BULL. His description 
is as follows: 

Age 37; height, 6 feet; weight, 165 pounds; dark brown eyes; heavy 
eyebrows; very dark brown and unusually bushy wavy hair; nose widens 
at base and regular; smooth face; good looking; very prominent and fine 
teeth; very affable; fluent talker; good dresser; wore on leaving here 
dark suit, tight fitting. 

If in Eastern or New England section, may be touring with Dodge car. 
THOMAS D. McCarthy, United States Marshal, 
CHARLES DeWOODY, Division Superintendent, 
Department of Justice. 



The poster circulated by the Government offering a reward for O'Leary's capture. 
Thousands of these were circulated all over the United States and Canada. 



X 

BETRAYED AND ARRESTED. 

June 12th. Everything is running smoothly except my 
Ford Car. Yesterday I started off with a load of 
Sutner's strawberries for Ridgefield and broke down at the 
crossroads. The elder O'Leary came along in his car and 
offered to help me. He's a typical O'Leary, thin and wiry and 
ought to live forever. I was embarrassed by his offer and de- 
clined it with thanks. He sped away without recognizing me. 

About ten o'clock, I decide to go down the main road 
for some rabbit weed. I throw several bags in the car and 
endeavor to start it. It won't budge. Finally I start it but 
it won't run on all cylinders. It has a distinct knock in the 
engine and I decide to examine the bearings. The knock is 
low down and must be in the bearings. Getting my tools, I go 
under the car after first drawing off the oil. I am working 
there about one hour when I hear the low rumbling of an 
automobile coming down the road to my ranch. No automobile 
except mine has ever come down that route. I know why it's 
coming. Lyons has told where I am. I wait with my hand 
on the bearing. The auto, a fine looking Franklin, stops in 
front of my gate. Two men get out. West, the Rural Free 
Delivery man is one; the other, a husky detective. His 
trousers are carefully creased. His shoes are polished. He 
wears an old coat, a poor disguise, and a soft hat. I can see 
a diamond ring on his finger. He doesn't see me under the car. 
He is looking around as he walks towards the house. The 
car is standing alongside the house and West and the detective 
are upon it before they see me. West sees me first. Then the 
detective spies me under the old Ford. "There is Jack Wells," 
West says to his companion impulsively. Then addressing me, 
West observed : "I've come around, Mr. Wells, for my stove," 
"Oh, yes, you did," I soHloquized. "Stove forsooth ; you came 

149 



150 My Political Trial and Experiences 

to point me out." The detective squatted down at my head 
and began to talk. "What's the matter. Jack ?" he asked. "Oh 
a little trouble with the bearings," I replied. "Do you suppose 
you could put up a couple of us for dinner?" he asked. "I 
can accomodate two or three," I answered. Sam was inside 
canning strawberries, apparently oblivious to what was going 
on outside. My jack knife was lying alongside the car. The 
detective picked it up saying, "That's a good knife." I made 
no answer. Another fellow then came in and the detective who 
was sitting on his haunches, watching me work said, "This is 
my chauffeur, he's a good mechanic." Addressing the chauffeur, 
he said ; "Jump in there, Hudson, and see if you can help him. 
See what's the matter." Hudson stooped and took a good look 
at my face. He then got under the cylinder and I pulled 
down the connecting rod with the result that he got a few 
spoonsful of black carboned oil in the face for his pains. He 
retreated and gave the detective a significant look and im- 
mediately two shots were fired near my head. "What are you 
shooting at?" I inquired with no indication of perturbation. 
"Oh, I am just trying out the gun," said he. "You want to 
be careful, you might frighten some of our chickens here," 
I answered. "Well, Jerry," he said, "You might just as well 
come out from under the car." Without a word I pulled 
myself out and immediately the detective grabbed my two wrists 
and handcuffed them together. 

In the meantime and before I had got from under the car, 
about ten or twelve men, each holding a revolver came up 
from different directions. They had surrounded the ranch. 
"Is he dead?" inquired one when he came and while I was 
lying under the car. The detective replied, "No, he's all right." 

When I got out from under the car, the same man laugh- 
ingly remarked, to Jones, who fired the shots, "I thought he 
was dead when I saw him lying under there, I thought you 
killed him." 

The men surrounding me looked funny, indeed. They were 
pale and puffing badly. I was neither frightened nor nervous. 
I understood the situation. I didn't care then what happened 



Betrayed and Arrested 151 

to me. If they shot me there Fd have laughed at them. Turn- 
ing to the excited mob around me I asked, "What's the matter 
boys, you look scared?" They made no reply but looked at 
each other. They seemed weighted with official responsibility 
and orders ; that they had been running rapidly was evident 
from their heavy breathing and the sweat which trickled down 
their faces. The excitement and suspense had made them pale. 

I am now under arrest and handcuffed. The drama or 
tragedy which ever it shall be, begins. I've had some fun, a 
few weeks' rest under God's sunlight and feel much improved. 
Now to New York to face my enemies and those of America, 
I want to go. I have no fear whatever. Why should I ? I 
have done nothing wrong. I was dressed in a blue shirt, blue 
overalls and high top shoes. My face was dirty, my hands 
were smeared with auto grease and black grit — a pretty pic- 
ture for people to see. The first impulse of my captors was 
to take me along with them in this garb, I asked permission 
to wash my. hands. "Surely you are not going to take me 
into a civilized place looking like this," I said. In the mean- 
time they had rummaged the house. I couldn't find Sam and 
didn't know where he was. Later, I learned that he went out 
on the front porch and had fainted. Subsequently I saw one 
of the men carrying water to him. Poor fellow ! I felt sorry 
for him. My request to wash my hands was granted. I 
thanked the detective who came in — Ralph Jones, a fine 
W^estern type. Jones was calm, cool and good natured, a good 
fellow in every sense. I then said; "Now boys, let us under- 
stand each other. You need have no fear of me; I'll go with 
you gladly and to New York cheerfully. All I ask is that 
you treat me properly and I'll reciprocate. I have nothing to 
fear. I am no criminal." The men were going around with 
revolvers in their hands, as though expecting an attack from 
some quarter. They were laboring under strain and excitement. 
If I moved a muscle they would have shot me. 

After I finished washing my hands, I asked permission to 
change my clothes. Jones held a whispered conversation about 
this request with his companions and finally said ; "We'll 



152 My Political Trial and Experiences 

let you change your clothes and take along one bag if you 
wish, but you must be quick and you must not move when I 
take the handcuffs off you." "Anything you ask will be done," 
was the only comment I made. 

I was taken into my bed-room. One man, revolver in hand, 
stood outside the window, another at the bedroom door, a 
third inside, each with a loaded revolver. Jones whom I was 
beginning to like became my valet for the time being. He said, 
"I am going to take off the cuffs. Don't move from your tracks 
or we shall drop you. Ask for what clothes you want, tell 
me where they are and I'll get them for you." He then re- 
moved the handcuffs. I cast off my ranch garb and dressed 
in the same suit I wore on my journey West. Jones helped 
me in a very kindly way. When the disrobing was completed 
he called the attention of one of his companions to me saying ; 
"There is the operation scar; there is nothing to that man, 
he's weak yet. He has no flesh on him. It was a joke to 
tell us that he'd put up a fight." Turning to me he said; 
"O'Leary, we can see and understand you. We were misin- 
formed about you. We'll treat you as a gentleman, we don't 
kill people out here unless they deserve it, we won't bring 
you to Portland in those old clothes." I thanked him and as- 
sured him of my deep appreciation of his courtesy. Then 
followed a scene I'll never forget. Sam was brought in, in 
response to a request to see me. With pale face and trembling 
voice he asked, "Jack, what does all this mean?" Placing 
my hand on his shoulder, I said, "Sam, I am no criminal. 
I have done no wrong. I have committed neither murder nor 
larceny. My name is Jeremiah O'Leary. I'm a New Yorker, 
I came here to escape people who were persecuting me; to 
get rest." Sam's face brightened. He grasped my hand as 
though to crush it, and asked; "Are you Jeremiah O'Leary, 
the editor of "Bull." I said, "yes," and he replied. "Mr. 
O'Leary, I know all about you. I've read many of your writ- 
ings^ — all I could get hold of. Good heavens! Had I known 
you were Jeremiah O'Leary, I'd have hidden you here. I'd 
have taken you where no man could find you. I consider it 



Betrayed and Arrested 153 

an honor, to shake you by the hand." He then broke down 
and cried like a baby. I tried to comfort him saying, "Don't 
worry, Sam. I'll be all right. I have done no wrong. I'll 
see you again. Thanks, Sam for all your kindnesses." Here's 
some money (I handed him about fifty dollars). Run the 
ranch yourself. Sell anything and buy anything you think 
proper and when I get back to the Tombs* I'll write you." 
I asked him to send my wife about 25 qts. of the strawberries 
he had preserved and gave him her address. I threw a few 
odds and ends into my grip and, handcuffed to Jones, left the 
ranch. Over in Sutners a group of berry pickers had assembled. 
They were puzzled. With my unshackled hand, I waved them 
a good bye. They replied in kind. I took a last look at the 
ranch — the chickens — ^the whole scene as I was bumped away 
over the lane which led up about a third of a mile to the 
main road. I was in a happy mood and talked to the detec- 
tives — four of them and the driver all squeezed in — I, be- 
tween. We soon hit the main road and were speeding over 
fifty miles an hour to Portland. I took a last look at every- 
thing, Mt. Hood particularly, in the distance, with its smiling 
top and to the west the beautiful wooded country with the 
Scapoose Mountains in the distance. 

Arriving in Portland I am brought to the office of the De- 
partment of Justice and handcuffed to a heavy bag containing 
a heavy weight for safe keeping. Later I am permitted to 
go to a barber shop, to get shaved, and then, to lunch. Sub- 
sequently I go for a walk with two handcuffs on me, one on 
each wrist, and each attached to a chain which runs through 
the sleeves of my coat and around my neck. I don't mind them. 
When they ask me in the office of the Department of Justice, 
if I care about them, I reply in the negative, and inspired by 
the thought of the Nazarene who suffered on Calvary, I 
accept my cross with patience. I'm not worried. I am rather 
happy knowing that I shall soon see the faces of my loved 
ones. Ralph Jones, and "Russ" Bryan, another detective and 
a fine fellow, took me to the Portland Park where we sat 
on a bench and enjoyed the refreshing breeze. Later, we 

•city Prison of New York. 



154 My Political Trial and Experiences 

went to Jones' room in his hotel. They were apparently await- 
ing instructions from Washington. Telegrams were passing 
back and forth. I was finally brought before United States 
Attorney Haney, a very fine gentleman who interrogated me 
for an hour. His questions were fair. He was anxious to 
know if any Portlanders had anything to do with my presence 
here. I gave him my word of honor that no one in Portland 
knew I was here. I briefly stated my position and explained 
the reasons why I sent President Wilson the famous telegram 
in the 1916 campaign. He expressed the opinion that the 
Irish question should be laid aside until after -the war. I 
answered by pointing out the tremendous advantage of settl- 
ing it now. He said some nice things to make a very favor- 
able impression on me. He certainly took no advantage of 
me, and I was proud of him because he was an Irish-American 
and I was glad to see that he was not the kind of prosecutor 
who would degrade his office and his manhood by unfair or 
unprofessional methods. 

I spent the night in the Portland jail. At the detectives' 
request I registered as Jeremiah Moynihan. They didn't 
want anybody to know that I was under arrest. In- 
stead of being taken to a cell where I expected to go, I was 
given a private room and spent my first night in jail with a 
young man who had deserted his wife. He was very friendly. 
We talked for three hours. I told him I was a lawyer, listened 
to his story and advised him what to do. I learned much 
about Mexico and Southern California from him. 

June 13th. I slept well the first night I ever spent in jail. 
The other prisoners made a lot of noise. They were vei-y un- 
ruly. The night keeper told me they would probably haze me 
if he had placed me amongst them. They have what is called 
"Kangaroo Court" in Western prisons. The chief purpose 
of the "Court" is to get the newcomer's spare cash and God 
help any unfortunate who conceals it. They inflict all sorts 
of torments on him. I don't know whether I am sorry for being 
spared the horrors of the "Kangaroo Court" I had no money 
at all and the experience might have benefited me. 



HOMEWARD BOUND. 

Jones and Bryan call at 8 o'clock. Handcuffs again. Break- 
fast being over I'm informed that I'm going to start for 
New York over the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Rail- 
road. I'm delighted. I have never traveled the northern route 
and I await the trip with great interest and expectancy. We 
spend the day at the headquarters of the Department of 
Justice where I am regarded in the nature of a curiosity. 
Later, we go for a stroll through the park, and at six o'clock 
I am on a train ready to start New Yorkward. I've been 
asked about Lyons. I say nothing but I have heard enough 
to convince the most incredulous that Lyons disclosed my 
whereabouts to the Government. I go to sleep in peace. 

June 14th. Spokane. A peculiar looking city. They tell 
me it's very pro-English. God forgive it ! I lose my bag in 
the Spokane station. Jones telegraphs back for it and asks 
the police to hold it and forward it to Portland. Butte by 
nightfall. Ralph Jones says; "If the boys of Montana knew 
you were on this train, they'd be here to meet you. Butte has 
a large Irish population." I felt a desire to see the men of 
Butte, but I am under arrest and I cannot gratify my wish. 
Montana looks wild. The lands seem devoted principally to 
pasture. 

The state has a sentimental interest for me. Thomas Francis 
Meagher who was condemned to death by a British Court, 
and who later became a hero of the Civil War, was Governor of 
Montana and was drowned in a very mysterious manner, not 
far from where this is written. 

June 15th. Reaching South Dakota, we were joined at Aber- 
deen by Charles DeWoody, head of the New York Department 
of Justice. He was glad to see me and described the condition 
of my wife as very serious. He was very mysterious but fair. 

155 



156 My Political Trial and Experiences 

We breakfasted together. They said an Aberdeen paper 
contained a report that I was coming East on this train. The 
Western men censured DeWoody and DeWoody blamed the 
Westerners. The secret was out, but it was only a rumor. 
South Dakota is more of an agricultural state than Mon- 
tana. I am interested in this country and think well of the 
Non-Partisan League as I pass through. I am proud to tra- 
verse a state where the farmers and other enterprising citi- 
zens have cast loose from corrupt politics and politicians. 
We need such men and such policies in the East where men 
are in the strong grip of selfish and cunning politicians, who 
would sell their brothers for a job. America has certainly a 
large crop of crafty politicians. If our politicians were only 
statesmen, the United States would get somewhere. With few 
exceptions our politicians are woefully deficient in independ- 
ence and the ability to analyze anything except the best way to 
get votes and offices. With this in view, they set about to fool 
the electorate shamefully. What do they care ? Once elected, 
they can hold office for two, three or four years. After that 
the people can whistle jigs to milestones. 

We played cards today. DeWoody, Jones, Bryan, and 
Hudson, a quiet young man of the Portland Secret Service 
who is accompanying us East had hands. The Westerners are 
delighted with the trip. Neither of them has ever seen New 
York and I think they're grateful to me for giving them this 
opportunity. I spend much time telling them all about it. I 
map out an itinerary for them and they write it in their note- 
books. Hudson is in charge of the party. He is keeping track 
of all the expenditures and explaining the law as to allowances.. 
The government is very stingy in the matter of travelling al- 
lowances for its detectives. They are allowed 65 cents for 
breakfast, a dollar for other meals and 25 cents for "tips." 
Even the government recognizes "tips." I'm glad they recog- 
nize something because I often imagine that the bureaucrats at 
Washington are not human at all. I learn a whole lot about 
the inside workings of the Secret Service in transit. The 
Bryans, Jones and Hudsons have a huramx s.i.(le a?i4 wh&n thev 



Homeward Bound 157 

get hold of a good fellow — as I always try to be — they are 
good fellows too. I have been far from well the last two days 
and Jones is much concerned about me. He wants to know 
if he can't do something to help me. 

A funny thing happened last night. We are traveling in 
a stateroom. DeWoody has a section outside with Hudson. 
Jones and Bryan are with me. I sleep in the top bunk and 
Jones underneath. Bryan has one in the side. Each night 
Jones puts a patent lock on the door so that it can't be opened 
from the inside. He holds the key. They are taking no chances 
with me. Both fell asleep and Jones is a heavy sleeper. I 
hung my trousers on a hook alongside my bunk. In my hip 
pocket was a box of tobacco. During the night being unable 
to sleep, I reached for my tobacco box in the dark. The train 
was travelling at a rapid pace and making night hideous with 
noise. From my pocket, I pulled what I thought was my to- 
bacco box. Judge to my surprise when I found that it was a 
holster with an automatic revolver. "Russ" Bryan had hung 
his trousers over mine. I glanced at the revolver, and laughed 
as I saw the two detectives asleep. What a criminal would 
have done then and there to effect his escape isn't hard to 
imagine. I put the revolver back in Bryan's pocket and went 
to sleep. With it I could have mastered both, secured the Jones' 
revolver, escaped at the next station unknown to any one until 
morning, when I would have had a good start. Were I as 
bad as the English-controlled newspapers have painted me, I 
would have done it. I don't know what they're going to do 
with me when I reach New York. Like Byron, "I've a heart 
for any fate," one thing is certain, I'll fight. I have number- 
less friends. Their lips may be sealed now, but they will re- 
main true to me. 

June 16th. I told Bryan about the revolver incident re- 
ferred to. He turned pale. Jones looked surprised. But I 
told "Russ" he could give me a hundred revolvers and have no 
fear. I pledged my word to practice the square deal with 
them and nothing could induce me to break that promise. 
We play cards, swap stories and pass a pleasant day. I'm 



158 My Political Trial and Experiences 

still sick and "Ralf" Jones takes care of my likes and wishes. 
He has a good heart and I like him. DeWoody isn't a bad 
fellow. He has work to do, but he treats me with courtesy 
and kindness. I tell Bryan all about the Sinn Fein movement, 
disillusion him about many things, and show him how our 
work has been misrepresented by the corrupt press every- 
where. DeWoody is taking an advantage of me. He wants 
me to talk but it is useless. He knows there is no plot. I 
can see that he is obeying orders, and I know he doesn't like 
his job. He is sympathetic, particularly for my wife. 

We roll into Minneapolis and St. Paul about 6 o'clock. I 
see here at a glance the influence of the East. The Twin Cities 
have such a metropolitan and cosmopolitan appearance. I 
never spoke here in my travels ; much to my regret. We get 
out, walk about the station, take in a few breaths of pure air, 
smoke, comment on things and people, and when the time 
comes jimip aboard and sink into our seats for another long 
run. We'll be in Chicago, the place made famous and made 
over by Mrs. O'Leary's cow, tomorrow morning. It was in 
Chicago that I gave Dr. David Lloyd Jenkins Jones, a patriarch 
preacher much concern one beautiful April Sunday afternoon 
by telling the naked truth to about fifteen thousand people in 
the Coliseum. Chicago is the home of Thompson, the Mayor, 
the New Englander who can't be browbeaten or bullied by 
anybody. He stands for America first and only. So do I, 
and "a fellow feeling makes us wondrous kind." 

June 17th. "Chicago," cries the trainman, and out we get, 
I am handcuffed to my old friend Jones' satchel. After wait- 
ing a short time for the Chicago Secret Service men, one ap- 
pears and we are treated to a nice auto ride in a fine car driven 
by a pretty chauffeur with black eyes, black rolling hat and 
leather gauntlets. We are going to take the Manhattan Lim- 
ited over the Pennsylvania, home. It leaves at 12:40. We 
are there. Under arrest I bid Chicago au revoir but not good- 
bye. 



xir 

IN NEW YORK AGAIN. 

June 18th. Home. Just six weeks away. We get out at the 
Manhattan transfer, New York knows I am coming. A re- 
porter for the "New York American" is the first to greet 
me. "May I take your picture?" he asks. "Won't you make 
a statement?". He persisted. "No," was my answer. We 
take a down town train, but it is crowded. I am handcuffed 
but the reporter for the "American" does something con- 
temptible. He tells the passengers on the train. "That's 
O'Leary," and they gawk and stare. I am self-possessed. 
The reporter wants to set a crowd on me to scare me with a 
view, no doubt, to see how it affects me. His scheme fails. 
I smile and receive smiles in return. Crowds are all right. 
I arrived at the Hudson Terminal, met by moving picture 
cameras grinding away at my face. I walk to 21 Park Row, 
Mr. DeWoody's office. The place is crowded with newspaper 
men and Secret Service operators. They seem cheerful and 
happy. "O'Leary is back." It's a big thing to capture O'Leary, 
and the sleuths seem proud. A few minutes later DeWoody 
asked me if I wished to see the reporters. He says it is all 
right. I consent. He advises me to say nothing. I see them 
and answer a few questions. One asks, "Did your brother 
John aid your escape?" What did he mean? Was John ar- 
rested? I answered, "That's an inhuman question. Do you 
want me to say something that might hurt my brother ?" Then, 
for the first time I learned that John was on trial held in 
$100,000 bail, and with Lyons and myself accused of conspiracy 
to obstruct justice. I was shocked and surprised. In a few 
minutes I was brought to the Federal Building before Judge 
Learned Hand and confronted with two indictments — one a 
capital offense; the other punishable by two years' imprison- 
ment. I plead "not guilty" to both. Now an extraordinary 

159 



160 My Political Trial and Experiences 

incident happens which indicates to me crudity or ruthlessness 
on the part of those in charge of John's prosecution. I am 
brought into the office of Assistant United States Attorney 
Benjamin Matthews, We shake hands. Matthews impresses 
me as a good-hearted fellow, boyish with an open face, a man 
born for better things. He informs me that he wants me to 
sit down so as to permit several people to identify me. I am 
horrified as a man named Biglow, a grand jury stenographer 
assigned to the New York office by the Attorney General's 
office at Washington, brings in several men, each of whom is 
asked, "Do you know that man?" indicating me. "Did you ever 
see him before?" Each one looks me over carefully and ex- 
cept one answers, "no." Biglow begins to urge them to identify 
me, with words such as, "Look him over carefully," "Are you 
sure?" and "Be sure." Such methods of identification are tanta- 
mount to subornation of perjury. They are never used in the 
Tombs or at New York police headquarters. No jury would 
accept such methods as evidence in a court of justice. The 
proper method, the safe and fair and indeed the customary 
way is to place the person to be identified among ten or fifteen 
others, and then ask the identifier to walk in and pick the man 
out. Here, however, is the identifier in the moment of great 
public excitement led into a room where I am sitting alone, 
having been informed who I am, and after I am pointed out 
asked, "Have you ever seen that man before?" I protest at 
Mr. Biglow's interference and am told by Mr. Matthews to 
keep still. I refuse and protest again and the man is taken 
away. Finally the last of the identifying group looks at me. 
He is asked the usual pointed questions, holds his head down, 
can't see me but says, "Yes." That man is a prevaricator. 
He acts the part, I know it, yet what can I do? Who these 
men are, I know not. I have never seen any of them before. 
This is a terrible thing to do to a citizen in my position. Yet 
I am powerless except to record the incident and expose it at 
the proper time. No reputable District Attorney would do this, 
but it is war time now and everything crooked and corrupt 
goes, is fostered and tolerated. Anything to hang or shoot a 




The Tombs. 



In New York Again 161 

man of Irish blood seems permissible. I say nothing but do 
a great deal of thinking. 

Mr. Matthews tells the marshal to take me "up stairs." 
I shake hands with Mr. Matthews and say, "I am a good 
American, Mr. Matthews, I have never raised my hands or 
voice or pen against the United States. I love my country too 
much to harm it. As for England, I owe that country nothing. 
If the charge against me is that I have tried to free Ireland, I 
plead guilty. I have always favored the freedom of Ireland. I 
would be a poor American if I acted otherwise." Mr. Matthews 
replies; "O'Leary, it is my duty to convict you and hang you 
if I can, it isn't a pleasant duty but I must do it." I answer. 
"The public official who hangs an American of Irish blood or 
extraction for devotion to Irish freedom will be outlawed 
at no distant date. It may be popular just now, but times will 
change. What is done now in haste will be repented bitterly 
in leisure." 

Soon afterward, I am taken to Marshal McCarthy's office. 
The Marshal generously gave me the use of a room where I 
met my father, mother, sisters. Aunt Mary and several friends. 
I have lunch after which I'm railroaded to the Tombs. 

There are many quaint and gruesome bits of history con- 
nected with the Tombs, some of which have been tabulated, 
chronicled, pigeon-holed, and put away for future reference. 
It has been the scene of various domestic tragedies, executions, 
escapes, extortion, political skull duggery at the expense of 
American Courts of justice, and other evil features of metro- 
politan life. Nevertheless, I am glad to find myself within its 
confines. Now I'll have the peace denied me on the outside. 
I shake hands with Warden Hanley, laugh and chat with him, 
am brought upstairs, shake hands with "Tom" Marshal, the 
desk man, am registered and brought in through a barred door 
where I am introduced to Patrick Coffey by Warden Hanley. 
"Well," I said looking at Coffey who smiled and shook hands, 
"I suppose I'll have "Coffey" for breakfast, "Coffey" for 
dinner, "Coffey" for supper and "Coffey all the time.'* As 
"Coffey" laughed I kept it up by adding, — "You look strong, 



162 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Paddy, I always liked strong coffee." He laughs good-natur- 
edly at my pun on his good name. I am taken to my cell. 
The warden gives orders to "clean it out." It is No. 112 on 
the first tier. "Hurry up, there," shouts Coffey to the "run- 
ners," "Clean that out," adding, "There is John's cell," point- 
ing to my brother's. It was originally planned to place me in 
the same cell with John, but the Government would not permit 
this. Much to my surprise, the Government insisted that I be 
removed to another tier. I am therefore sent to the fifth, 
so that I can't see my own brother. Warden Hanley took me 
there and introduced me to Mr. McCarron, my new keeper. 
McCarron greeted me cordially. I could tell by his face that 
he was a humane kindly fellow. Cell 519 was selected for me 
and immediately other prisoners were assigned to prepare it 
for the "Irish political prisoner." 

The work done, I enter and take possession, I am glad to 
be on this, "the boys' " tier. Boys, even of the criminal 
type, are light-hearted, and preferable as prison companions 
to the desperate, sullen, brutal types of humanity on the first 
tier. I hope the Government will be satisfied now that two 
brothers raised in decent Christian American homes are sep- 
arated. Brotherly companionship is denied me. That's new- 
born democracy ! John is in Court now on trial. I am willing 
to take the stand and exculpate him. I have nothing to fear. 
I told the court that I had no lawyer to defend me and re- 
quested to be assigned one. The court said it would comply 
and would consult with me about the matter. I like Judge 
Learned Hand's face. He looks like an honest man with 
character. He'll assign a lawyer who won't be a government 
spy. I'm certain of that. The interior of my cell is uninviting. 
A bunk which falls from the wall and is attached to it by hinges 
first attracts my attention. There is an upper and a lower 
one, just like a Pullman sleeper. I'm to have no cell mate. 
That's good. The rest includes a toilet bowl and a wash 
basin and an iron table about eighteen inches square also at- 
tached to the wall by hinges. It's a little too high for writing. 
I don't like the table. I'll have to write on my lap. Two hooks 




No. 519. The Cell in the Tombs. 



An Interior View of O'Leary's 
Cell. 




A View of the Fifth Tier. 



In New York Again 163 

to hang clothes near the door afford a good chance for thieves 
to pick my pockets. The hooks should be in the far corner 
away from the cell door. There are two grated air vents, too 
small for a man to crawl through. A heavy barred door that 
slides back and forth completes the picture of my new home. 
Everything is steel except the floor, which is concrete. 

The ordinary conception of a prison is that the cell windows 
open into the outside air. The supposition is incorrect. Inside 
the windows of the Tombs is a big corridor. The cells are in 
the center of the floor and the doors open into this corridor. 
The corridor runs in an oval around the outside of the cells. 
When a man steps out of his cell he is in the corridor ; the 
outer wall of the prison forms the outside wall of the corridor ; 
the cells the inside one. The cells are back to back. They are 
about seven feet wide and eight feet long. Being in the inside 
the cells are necessarily dark, and therefore must be continually 
lighted by electricity. One electric bulb up near the ceiling 
supplies the light which is turned on at six A. M. and out at 
nine p. m. There are thirty-eight cells on each tier and ac- 
commodations for seventy-six prisoners. The Tombs proper 
has eight tiers, a large dormitory for "trusties," a woman's 
prison and a separate building where drug addicts and unruly 
prisoners are confined. At two o'clock, I have an hour and a 
half exercise in the yard, where I get sunlight and air. I'll get 
this once a week. I take my first exercise and enjoy it. Every- 
body shakes hands with me. I am quite a curiosity to the 
prisoners. To be a jolly fellow here means much the same 
as it does elsewhere, so I begin that way. 

A fellow called "Scoti" who looks like an old timer, smokes 
a sawed-off pipe, is about sixty years old, and diminutive in 
stature, with closely cropped hair, salutes me thus : "Are you 
the fellow what they are going to hang?" I looked at him 
for a moment and asked, "Do you think that any one would 
hang the likes of you?" "My God," he exclaimed, "that's 
the worst thing that was ever said to me and I have spent 
nearly fifty years of my life in jail." The gang gives him 
the laugh and he walked away. \^on Rinteln, the famous Ger- 



164 My Political Trial and Experiences 

man spy was pointed out to me. People in office and business 
buildings all around assemble at the windows to see me. 
They succeed. I meet Willard J. Robinson, who I am told, 
is "a conspirator indicted with me." We agree not to talk 
about our cases. His lawyer has advised him not to, and I 
respect his suggestion. We talk of other things, his arrest, 
the way he was treated, and his prison life. Robinson is a cool, 
nervy proposition, a real political prisoner. He was glad to 
see me and laughed at the thought of us walking amongst 
criminals in the Tombs yard. The string of humanity en- 
circling about is the most picturesque I have ever seen. 
Negroes, Chinese, Hindus, Italians, Germans, English, Scotch 
and a few Irishmen are grouped together. Each has a story 
to tell, yet, they are all God's creatures. Instinctively, I sym- 
pathize with them. Murderers, burglars, highway robbers, 
thieves, drug-addicts, bigamists — fifty seven varieties of human 
nature — fine companionship for men who are not criminals! 
More new-born democracy. We are political prisoners, yet 
our country places us among criminals. I have a wife and 
four small children, decent, respectable, law-abiding, yet here 
I am. Such is political revenge. Be it so. I thank you, Mr. 
Wilson. I can and will stand it. I hope my mind will weather 
the reign of terrorism and the hardship imposed upon it. 
The grass must have dew, the earth sun, vegetables rain, and 
man, companionship. The keepers are not criminals. They 
seem to rise above their environment. That helps. I'll try, 
too. At 3 :30 we are called in and lined up in columns of twos 
and sent back to our cells. At 4 o'clock, waiters came around 
shouting orders for "restaurant." The Tombs has its own restau- 
rant maintained by the city. I am told this was done to prevent 
prisoners from being poisoned with food sent in from the out- 
side. A prisoner with money can order from a limited bill of 
fare. He can get eggs in any style, beef always, chicken on 
Sundays, one potato, pie, terrible cake, bread, soup and a few 
other things. No one can receive fruit, candy or flowers from 
the outside world. They sent drugs in from outside in fruit 
and that privilege was stopped. Matinee girls would have a 



In New York Again 165 

hard time in this place. They sell fruit, candy, tobacco, cigars, 
matches, writing paper, stamps and pencils. No glass, knives 
or forks are allowed in the cells. Prisoners must eat with a 
table spoon — a slight improvement on man's primitive method. 
I never wanted much so I am not going to be fastidious here. 
I'll be content with what I get and take everything as it comes. 
All the tier salesmen are glad to see me. They greet me 
warmly. There appears to be much human nature in this place 
and no clammy handshakes. I like a fellow who grasps your 
hand as though he had hold of something he liked. 

All day long I have been an object of curiosity. I had to 
place a curtain across my cell door to keep out curiosity- 
seekers. Curiosity gets on my nerves even in prison. A nor- 
mal man like privacy. 



XIII 

STONE WALLS DO NOT A PRISON MAKE. 

McCarron offers to lend me a little table he has in a spare 
cell which he uses as an office. I accept. He gives me a pen 
and ink. "If you need a comb and brush you can use mine," 
he suggests. McCarron has a good face, handsome type. He 
was born in County Monaghan. Everybody calls me "Jerry." 
I don't mind. The warden asks good naturedly, "Is everything 
all right." Warden John J. Hanley is loved by all. I can under- 
stand, why? He is a ray of sunshine in a dark place. One 
of the reasons why there are so few escapes from the Tombs 
is Hanley's personality and popularity. The prisoners know 
that if they break jail Hanley will be blamed and they won't 
put him in a hole. There is honor even in prison. I make 
friends with "the boys" at once. They give me a friendly 
smile. "What are you in for?" I asked each of them. I 
listen to their stories and advise them. Lawyers have terrible 
reputations in this place. Criminals call them "crooks." I 
defend them when I can, endeavoring to explain the "why's" 
and wherefore's, and I might add the "therefores." 

At five o'clock I am locked up, safe from society and society 
is safe from me until 9 a. m. Now I am alone. My wife and 
family are mentally before me. I strain my mind and send it 
through the steel cage to them. In fancy I see them at home 
waiting for a "daddy" who "cometh not." I get the evening 
papers and read about myself. One yellow journal announces 
that I "broke down." A lie. Another says that I'm "nervous." 
Another lie. The v/ish in both instances was father to the 
thought. I am now under a death charge. I am told they are 
going to hang me. What nonsense ! Echoes of Mrs. Surratt's 
hanging long disturbed Washington. Death never had any 
terrors for me — I always meant what I said. I couldn't love 
Emmet or admire him and be unwilling to sacrifice. I called 

166 



Stone Walls Do Not a Prison Make 167 

my oldest boy "Robert Emmet" to remind him always of Em- 
met's noble qualities. I fixed it so that he couldn't get away 
from the best traditions of his race. I calculated it would 
help make a man of him. Now, here I am in America in 
practically the same position once occupied by Emmet. No 
oppressive government can successfuly conquer or enslave a 
man willing to die for the right. Our whole civilization is 
built upon human sacrifice. In the madness of the mob some- 
one yells — "Hang him," and they gibbet him. A man falls 
on the street and they gather about shutting off what he needs 
most — fresh air. He gasps for breath, but they draw closer. 
A building is burning and they gather around to impede 
the firemen in their work. Someone yells "fire !" in a theatre, 
and they stampede. A blatherskite makes a speech and they 
cheer. A child cries and they laugh. Someone runs and they 
follow. A man can stop on any busy spot on Broadway and 
look up in the air at nothing and in five minutes a mob gathers 
and gazes skyward. A mob is the most senseless, dangerous 
force imaginable. A stone fell from the spire of St. Patrick's 
Cathedral last St. Patrick's day. I' saw one man run away 
and the whole crowd follow at his heels. One shouted and 
the mob yelled. I rushed through the police lines to my wife 
and children and saw a judge falling off the reviewing stand 
and a congressman break his wrist because both were affected 
by mob hysteria. I've talked to audiences everywhere and 
found that they can be led like children. One person can set 
ten thousand people hand-clapping. A ragged boy can yell 

three cheers for !" and the audience yells itself hoarse. 

One night in a Montreal Theatre a man stood up when the 
orchestra played "Silver Threads Among the Gold" and the 
whole audience arose like a lot of fools. He did it to prove 
how wild the patriotic war hysteria was and he succeeded. The 
newspapers know the psychology of the mob. So does the 
present government, but they should not forget the fickleness 
of the mob. Russia has learned that at great cost. America 
must be careful not to hang any man in haste because to do 
so might bring about repentance at leisure. I know the mob 



168 My Political Trial and Experiences 

spirit well. I have observed it all through my public life. In 
speeches, I have urged carefully and religiously against dis- 
order, I have addressed many volatile audiences and never had 
disorder. I am in jail now, and my brother is on trial on ac- 
count of mob hysteria and fanaticism fanned to a flame by a 
corrupt press. My brother is held in prohibitive bail pursuant 
to the same mob spirit afifecting a judge's mind. The states- 
men who can distinguish between the mob-spirit and its causes 
are wise. The statesman who can remain calm, sober and cope 
with the mob is powerful. Men who yield to the mob are the 
greatest menace to democracy and to rational government. I 
don't mean conservative government or reactionary govern- 
ment. I mean just government based upon the Declaration 
of Independence. It's all right to read that historical docu- 
ment on July 4th ; the thing that counts is to practise its teach- 
ings the rest of the year. That's why I am here now. I 
took that document seriously. I argued from it. If I 
read it on July 4th and let it "go to Hades" the rest of the 
year, I'd be in Congress or on the bench. It is strange how 
Europeans judge us by these principles while most of our 
people never dream of their existence. Some even tell you 
that Jefferson's masterpiece is obsolete. They tell the truth 
so far as their respect for truth is concerned but little do they 
dream that it is they who are obsolete. They have retro- 
graded. The Declaration of Independence cannot be sur- 
passed or improved upon. Abandonment of it is retrogression. 

The boys are making some noise tonight, howling, cursing 
and swearing. Foul and filthy talk is quite popular here: I 
don't like this part of the program and tomorrow I will talk 
to them. At seven o'clock my day keeper, McCarron goes 
home, and night keeper "Jock" Funk comes on. He is friendly 
but reserved. I don't talk much. I don't know the place yet. 
I must get my bearings before I talk to anybody. Lights 
go out at nine and I roll in between two blankets. The bed 
is fairly comfortable. I am just six feet 1 inch tall. My feet 
extend beyond the bed which is about six feet long. My head 
rests against a chain which holds the bed to the wall. Mc- 



Stone Walls Do Not a Prison Make 169 

Carron has given me a tolerably good pillow — and "Fred" 
Williams, a "trusty" has put a pillow-case on it — a white bag — 
which serves the purpose. "Fred" also secured for me a couple 
of "sheets/ so I feel quite stylish. "Fred" is going to look 
after my cell. Williams is not his real name, but "what's in a 
name" so long as it's here ? 

June 19th. I am in a sound sleep and awake with a jump 
as I hear a terrible grating, rasping noise. "All right!" said 
the keeper. My light was lighted. I looked around in be- 
wilderment as half awake I wondered what it was all about. 
"All right" he said again. He saw I was in a sort of daze and 
said, "We're supposed to wake you fellows up at 6 o'clock." 
I said, "Must I get up?" "No," he replied, "you can sleep 
if you want to. I guess you're tired. You've been through 
a whole lot." I selected a spot on the ceiling, began to stare, 
and finally rolled over with my head to the wall and closed 
my eyes. I was thinking of home so near and yet so far. I 
was also thinking of John down on the second tier. I thought 
myself to sleep. While half asleep I hear the strains of "I 
want to go back — I want to go back to Oregon." I listen 
and laugh. I've discovered a new McCormack, I see his head 
with a little cap on it peek over my curtain to observe the 
effect of his lyric upon me. He is a picture for "Bull." His 
face presents a couple of teeth as he grins — one on the upper 
jaw slanting to the left. Any man who couldn't laugh at 
that face has no sense of humor. I roar. It was Reilly, a 
male soubrette from Charley Murphy's gas-house district. 
He is in for selling liquor to soldiers. Got six months for re- 
lieving the cramps of a detective in a soldier's uniform. He 
has a splendid repertoire of songs which include "Where the 
River Shannon Flows" and "Ireland must be Heaven 'cause 
my mother came from there." The fervor with which Reilly 
sings, his artistic expression, his rolling eyes joyfully scanning 
his hearers as he glides up and down the scales with the rich- 
est of sweetness, his crescendos and diminuendos aggravated 
somewhat by occasional rasping, made me regret that the 
Metropolitan had overlooked him. "Good-boy, Reilly" re- 



170 My Political Trial and Experiences 

warded his final flourish on a high note. Just as he was 
ascending to high "C some ungrateful wretch on the tier 
above threw a pail of water over him and poor Reilly "ducked" 
as though to go under a bar-room door to get under the 
"bridge" where he shook the water from his hat and asked 
more in wonder than in anger, "What do you think of that? 
Some fresh guy who can't sing is jealous and won't let any- 
body else hear good singing." Poor Reilly ! He is an Irish- 
American type, a typical rounder, absolutely harmless, funny 
wherever he goes. He is about 5 feet 6 inches tall, likes com- 
pany and possesses natural musical talents. His arrest and 
sentence for six months was an outrage. He has a wife and 
infant child. He is in jail because he had a big heart. A 
"soldier-detective" appealed to the good samaritanism in him, 
told him that he was sick and needed whiskey. Who wouldn't 
take a chance to get whiskey for a sick man ? I would. There 
are many other men in jail, trapped in a similar manner, 
with dependents on the outside. Such arrests and sentences 
are no credit to any country. Mr. Hylan should be proud 
of such contemptible police work. The men who should be 
prosecuted under this law are not the good Samaritans, who 
are imposed upon by malingerers, but those who carry on the 
traffic for profit. 

Breakfast man comes around at 7:20 o'clock. I order an 
orange, cornflakes and coffee, my usual morning meal. It 
costs 35 cents. The coffee is terrible. Several visitors, includ- 
ing Father Evers, the Tombs Chaplain, call. The priest is 
cordial and offers his services. Drs. McGuire and Lichten- 
stein, the Tombs physicians, call to see if they can "do any- 
thing." I know Dr. McGuire. I called him as an expert 
witness in court trials more than once. The prisoners are 
still curious. I can hear them gossiping about me from cell 
to cell. "Hey 610! O'Leary is down in 519." "Did you see 
him?" "No." "See the paper?" "Yes" "Great stuff." 

John is downstairs on the second tier. To know that your 
brother is so near and that you can't see him is a strange sen- 
sation. Poor fellow ! He has a wife and seven children. They 



Stone Walls Do Not a Prison Make 171 

tell me he goes to Court every morning about a quarter to 
ten. I would love to see him, but iron bars and Woodrov^ 
Wilson's new "democracy" block the way. 

At 9 :15 I hear they are going to bring him up for a moment. 
He comes. The keepers stand by. We talk about our health. 
Any reference to his case is prohibited by the Government. 
He goes. I wish him luck and express my regret that I have 
been the cause of so much suffering to him. This is great 
justice. A mother has two boys fighting for the United States, 
while two others just as patriotic are being persecuted by it. 
England wouldn't do such a thing as this. But here we have 
Southerners in charge. If Northerners went South and did 
such a thing, the Southerners would drive them out or per- 
haps apply some other well-known Southern methods, and 
no jury would convict them. 



XIV 

AT JOHN'S TRIAL. 

June 20th, 9:15 a. m. I hear the tier bell ring, and my 
keeper announces that I am to be taken to Court to testify- 
in John's case. Thank God! The chance I have been pray- 
ing for has come at last. I am not prepared, but I go joy- 
fully. I have nothing to fear. I shall answer all questions 
eagerly and clear my brother. I am ready. I am brought 
downstairs to the desk on the first tier where two marshals 
are waiting for me with handcuffs. They clasp them on my 
wrists and we start downtown through the crowded streets. 
The people seem to know me. I'm indifferent to their staring. 
I arrive at the Federal Building and am placed in a steel cage. 
Two negroes are here awaiting sentence. Marshal McCarthy 
looks. The poor negroes are frightened. I give them cour- 
age. Marshal McCarthy asks me if I want to go to his office. 
I answer, "I ask no favors and want none." He calls two 
marshals and says. "Take him out of that cage and over to 
my office." In the hall I pass nine familiar faces. Mrs. Han- 
nah Sheehy Skeffington smiles. Quite a crowd greets me. 
Newspaper men stare and try to talk to me. I rush by. In 
the Marshal's office I meet some members of my family. They 
are cheerful. I ask about John's case. "All right," is the 
answer. 

Presently I am called into Judge Hand's office, back of the 
trial room, and in a few minutes obtain my first view of the 
Court room. All eyes seem friendly. Col. Felder and Earl 
Barnes, opposing lawyers, look like a couple of roosters which 
have been picking at each other for several days. The tense 
atmosphere amuses me. Barnes laughs, but Col. Felder re- 
gards him scornfully. The jury look very interested and 
stare at me. I am at ease, absolutely confident of my inno- 
cence and certain that I can show John blameless. I don't 

172 



At John's Trial 173 

know anything about the case, I only know the facts, and I 
am ready to tell them. 

The crowd in the Court room smiles encouragingly. The 
faces of the jury relax as I answer. My rest has benefited 
and given me perfect self control. John seems worn and wor- 
ried. His children and faithful wife — all tired and haggard 
looking are present. His jury looks sympathetic. I know 
juries well and judging by the faces I see the jury will not 
convict John O'Leary and I can tell by Barnes' demeanor that 
he is beaten. The press-table is crowded with newspaper 
men who strain for every word I say. The morning session 
over, I get a good lunch. I return to Court in the afternoon. 
I am excused while Surrogate Cohalan testifies as a character 
witness. He is friendly. There's a real Cohalan, I thought, as I 
pass through the rear door back into the Judge's lobby. At 
5 o'clock when Court adjourns, I am returned to the Tombs 
in handcuffs. I have no supper tonight. The restaurant is 
closed when I am brought in, so I go hungry. Be it so. Jail 
and hunger! What's the difference? General Charles P. 
Stone * spent 198 days in jail during the Civil War, the object 
of popular vengeance, without accusation, indictment, or trial 
and in violation of the Articles of War. I think about my wife 
and children. They are ever on my mind. I have not seen any 
of them yet. I expected them today and go to bed disappointed. 

June 21st. More cursing and swearing, foul talk and howls. 
Breakfast and then to Court. I am getting used to the hand- 
cuffs. I am on the stand again. The cross-examination be- 
gins. I have no fear. Why should I ? I am anxious for it. 
Barnes fishes and gets what he does not want. He questions 
me about what I said to Lyons the night before I left New 
York. I tell him that I talked about him. He asks me to repeat 

* Graduate of West Point Military Academy from Massachusetts. Served as 
Lieutenant in the Mexican war with high credit. To appease popular clamor 
for the disaster at Ball's Bluff, he was arrested in February, 1862, and con- 
fined In Fort Lafayette and Fort Hamilton, although testimony to his excel- 
lent reputation as a military commander and a man was given by General 
McClellan and other Union commanders. Stone spent 50 days in prison without 
permission to see his wife. He finally appealed to President Lincoln asking 
"if he could inform me why I was sent to Fort Lafayette." The President replied 
that "if he told me all he knew about it he should not tell much." After his 
release, without a word of explanation or exculpation from the Government, he 
went to Egypt and became Chief of General Staff to the Khedive. — "Twenty 
Tears of Congress." 



174 My Political Trial and Experiences 

the conversation. The jury strains and listens attentively. 
I gave none of them a chance to relax and held them until I 
finished. The "Tribune" says ; "For two hours yesterday Jere- 
miah A. O'Leary, in the Federal Court, made a soap box of 
the witness stand." Perhaps "soap box" may be a better name 
for the latter-day witness stand. At least it becomes a soap- 
box in the eyes of revengeful reactionaries when a man of 
Irish blood gets up there and vindicates himself. Shades of 
Horace Greeley, founder of the "Tribune" ! 

June 22nd. Saturday. A day of rest, thank God! I am 
in the Tombs, but I have done my duty. I have stuck to 
Washington's policies. And to "Tom" Jefferson's. Had Jef- 
ferson been captured by "John Bull" he would have been solil- 
oquizing on human liberty behind iron bars as I am. So would 
Washington and Adams and the rest of the fathers of the 
Republic. I feel these walls all about me. I can't stretch my 
arms without hitting them. There is no sunshine here. I don't 
fill up my diaphragm with fine air as I did on the chicken ranch. 
Nor do I hear Sam pounding around the kitchen as the fire 
crackles and the bacon sizzles. I am confined — but what's that ? 
Haven't I always been confined? Hasn't my greatest peace of 
mind come from going to a room and writing and smashing 
at the British propaganda that is eating the heart and damning 
the soul of my country? 

Father Evers calls. The prison workers talk to me. I am 
an object of curiosity. Here comes a layman — an evangelist 
who's going to look after my spiritual wants. I am writing. 
My curtain is up. I hear the boys outside, the trucks thunder- 
ing through Centre St., the cars grinding along, squeaking and 
clanging — ^the automobiles honking. "Hello ! my good man," 
says he, "what are you in here for?" observing me curiously. 
"Murder," says I, with a savage voice, like one who had slain 
another. "Murder!" he repeats. "That's terrible! Who 
did you kill?" was his next query. "Fifteen," I answer. 
"Fifteen! Great Scott!" exclaims the evangelist. "Well, 
there's hope for you" he added, consolingly. "I want no hope" 
I remark. "What's your religion?" he asks. "I haven't got 



At John's Trial 175 

any. I used to be a Catholic," is my answer. "That's it; 
that's it," says he, "You've lost your religion, and see how 
God has punished you." Unable to stand any further remarks 
from him I shout: "Get out of here, I don't want you preach- 
ing to me." "Be quiet, man" he continues, "There's still hope 
for you. Remember the thief who was crucified with Christ. 
Remember how he asked Christ to forgive him, and how 
Christ answered : "This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise," 
and with that he hurried away to Keeper McCarron. Point- 
ing to my cell, he thus addresses Mac: "Be careful of that 
man ; don't let him out, he's desperate. If you do, watch him, 
because he's liable to get your gun and kill every man on the 
tier." Turning around and fixing a last and despairing look 
upon my cell he walked out through the gate as McCarron 
laughed. "What did you say to him?" asked McCarron. "He 
thought I was a murderer, and wanted to convert me," I 
reply. 



XV 

SUNDAY IN THE TOMBS. 

A short dark fellow with bushy hair wants to see me. He's 
in 507. He answers to the name of Sol Dupre and comes 
from Massachusetts. He is a country boy and doesn't resemble 
a criminal. He ran away from home with another boy to see 
the country, got as far as Philadelphia, "went broke" and 
worked his way back to New York on an auto truck. Some- 
where in transit he bought a revolver with no purpose he 
swears, except to protect himself. When he arrived in New 
York, unkempt, unshaven and dirty, he was "frisked" and ar- 
rested. He wants to get out. He has neither friends nor funds. 
He shows me his mother's broken-hearted letters, breathing love 
to her boy in a crude way, and I make up my mind to help 
him. His case is before Special Sessions. I'll talk to him 
again, watch him and at an opportune time call his case to the 
attention of the proper authorities. Another boy calls me. He 
is indicted for highway robbery in the first degree. His ap- 
pearance indicates that he's no professional criminal. I 
question him and find that his mother is a washwoman, a 
widow with two children, this boy, 17 years of age, and a 
daughter, 2 years younger. The story he told me follows : 
It was Sunday. The boy with others was loitering about a 
vacant lot when a policeman drove him and his companions 
away. While walking along the street they accosted a man 
changing tires on his automobile. They stopped — just as boys 
do — and began to touch the car. The owner objected. The 
boys grew impudent and in a moment blows were struck. A 
policeman came. The boys ran. This boy was arrested and 
charged with highway robbery, because the automobile man 
asserted that his watch and chain were stolen in the scuffle. 
His word was accepted and the boy has been here one month 
in prison consorting with criminals while his poor helpless 

176 



Sunday in the Tombs 177 

mother is crushed and heartbroken, knowing not whither to go 
or what to do. The boy has worked faithfully and his em- 
ployers think well of him. I cross-examine him carefully and 
am assured of his innocence. So I resolve to help him. I am 
determined that justice will be done him. 

What has his mother done? She went to the parish priest 
who said: "I can do nothing. We have received orders not 
to interfere." Received orders! From whom? Such orders 
are ridiculous and can only result in the damnation of boys. 
I can't believe it, so I go back to my cell, write a letter to 
someone who can help, stating the facts, send it out and await 
results. 

I grow disgusted as I meet several of a real criminal type 
and finally return to my cell to think about my brother on the 
first tier and my loved ones at home. What a crime ; what an 
outrage it is for these cruel Southern persecutors to separate 
us ! When I think about my brother's predicament, I grow bit- 
ter and desperate. He has a sick wife and seven small children 
and yet he is held in $100,000 bail on a charge which is only a 
misdemeanor. Were he convicted the maximum punishment 
would not exceed two years' imprisonment. What about the 
constitutional prohibition against excessive bail? The Consti- 
tution! Did I ever dream I should live to see this day when 
a father of seven children would be shut up with criminals 
falsely charged with aiding his own brother to get a much 
needed rest? Such is liberty under the reign of President 
Woodrow Wilson. "Oh ! Liberty ! What crimes are committed 
in thy name !" And this is the country of my devotion, a coun- 
try I love because of its ideals, and this is the way its ideals 
are destroyed by the recognized leaders of the Democratic 
Party, founded by Jefferson, my political mentor. 

I'll go to sleep. More cursing, swearing, vile filthy talk. 
More of the new-born Democracy. Please God, I'll be out of 
this soon. Hanging is in store for me according to the news- 
papers. The press got a big setback when I went on the witness 
stand. They looked for revelations but none were forthcom- 
ing. They weren't quite ready with their frame-up. I chal- 



178 My Political Trial and Experiences 

lenged them and they fell down. Now what are the people 
thinking? Are they still fools? Can't they see now that all 
the stuff they have been reading about me is bunkum manu- 
factured by English propagandists to stir them into passions 
that will cause them shame and regret when fanaticism and 
the cry for vengeance subside. 

June 23rd. Sunday. My first in the Tombs. I awaken at 
6 o'clock, aroused by that terrible rasping made by the keeper 
grating his key along my cell door as he walks along. Break- 
fast comes. At 7:45 the keeper shouts, "All out for Catholic 
Service." My cell is opened. What a sight I see ! Boys rub- 
bing their eyes come stumbling out of their cells with dis- 
heveled hair and line up at the gate. They are marched to 
the Chapel where Father Evers is about to say Mass. The 
Chapel is small. About one hundred and fifty men are there. 
Criminals kneel reverently in prayer before the altar. The 
hardest hearts, the most calloused sinners have respect for 
God. Never before have I realized what a powerful factor 
religion is. If love conquers all, if music charms even savage 
hearts, religion compels even hardened malefactors to bow 
their heads in deep respect. In Court they are defiant or 
fearful ; here they are quiet and orderly. On the left of the 
altar stands a great crucifix with a life-size image of Christ. 
Was it placed there as a reminder that He suffered even 
more than ourselves ? Do these understand the true philosophy 
of the tragic spectacle before them — the crucifixion of the Man- 
God — almost two thousand years ago? Father Evers begins 
Mass and soon turns and delivers a sermon. The congrega- 
tion is small, the men are near him, but he lifts his voice in 
clear, solemn tones. No echoes return, nothing is more notice- 
able than the respectful stillness of unfortunates whose 
thoughts may be driven back to other days when as boys or 
men they listened to the warnings of other clergymen they 
had disobeyed. The front row is occupied by women. Over 
on the left I can see Margaret Sullivan, the maid of Victorica, 
with head slightly bowed, listening to the words that fall from 
Father Evers' lips. He speaks of the hypocrites of the World, 



Sunday in the Tombs 179 

of the greater criminals who are outwardly respectable but 
inwardly corrupt, the unprisoned criminals, the class un- 
caught, but nevertheless wretches before God, the hypocrisy 
of the world. Mass is soon over and under guard we return 
to our cells. Later, the Christian Scientists held their services, 
likewise the Protestants, and before each one the keeper calls 
out, "All out for Protestant Service," etc. The Jews had their 
service yesterday. 

Sunday in the Tombs is long and weary. The tier barkers 
who sell candy, cigars, and other commodities allowed to 
be sold, are absent. The men conscious of the day keep to 
their cells thinking no doubt of home, loved ones and friends 
on the outside. No supper is served. We must order our 
supper at noon. At one o'clock on Sunday the restaurant 
closes. I didn't know this, and therefore, did not order sup- 
per, so I go hungry tonight. I retire to my cell to write a 
letter to my wife. My home is before me. I am near my 
loved ones and yet I cannot see them. I must comfort them. 
They must be suffering far more than I. 



XVI 

JOHN'S CASE BREAKS DOWN. 

June 24th. John's case broke down. The Court declares 
a mistrial. An indicted juror was found on the jury. A fine 
scandal ! The Government says it didn't know it. I won- 
der who could know it if the Government didn't. The news 
causes great excitement here. John was released on ten 
thousand dollars bail. Thank God for that! But why, I 
ask, was he formerly held in one hundred thousand dollars 
bail? Let Mr. Wilson answer. Let his ideals of new-born 
Democracy, practically applied, answer. The Constitution for- 
bids excessive bail, but what's the Constitution when the fury 
of political revenge is involved? Anything to convict an 
O'Leary, anything to hang, jail, yes, crucify an Irish American, 
That's what's going on now in the land of the free, and the 
newspapers, more than any other influences, are responsible 
for it. 

I went on the witness stand Thursday, unbosomed my soul 
to the American public, defied the prosecution; my cross- 
examination occurred on Friday and what was the result ? The 
Government presented not one fact to sustain the outrageous 
indictments filed against me. On the contrary, I proved my 
claim of persecution. Even the newspapers were clearly im- 
pressed and very much surprised with the Government's glar- 
ing failure. The "Tribune" said I made a soap box out of 
the witness stand. The "Sun" declared that I made an excel- 
lent witness, and sprang a real sensation in the Wise letter. 
Thank God the clouds are rifting ! Why didn't the Government 
ask me about Victorica? About blowing up ships? About 
that revolution in Ireland? There can be only one answer, 
because I am innocent and they can't prove my guilt. Are 
the people fools? Have they lost their heads completely? Is 
their hate and hysteria so intense and unreasonable that they 

180 



John's Case Breaks Down 181 

want bogus plots, innocent men in jail and the guiltless to 
suffer as General Stone did during the Civil War? Follow- 
ing is a newspaper cutting which explains the brand of new- 
bom democracy meted out to me. Outlining his reasons for 
declining to defend me, Mr. Wise, in a letter to my brother, 
wrote : 

"There is another consideration that I want you to think 
over very carefully. I am a trained soldier. Five years of 
my life were devoted to the profession of arms. For more 
than one year I was in the service of the United States. I 
served in Cuba, and was mustered out of the service of the 
United States as a Major. I feel certain that within the next 
few weeks our Government will have to call for a million 
more men. I know that when this call comes, our Govern- 
ment is without adequate trained officers, and when the call 
comes I shall go. I feel my obligation to do so keenly, so 
keenly that I cannot knowingly do anything that might pre- 
vent me from going. 

"The officers of our Government are so bitter that if I 
should defend your brother in this case they would probably 
treat me as they have treated General Wood, and refuse to 
accept my ofiPer of service. 

"Under the circumstances, you can see that I cannot afford 
to put myself in any such position, I have no qualms about 
representing your brother, and if I were not tied up in my 
professional engagements and in my obligations to serve my 
country, I would not hesitate to do so. But from all that 
I have said I hope you will realize my position, and allow 
me to retire from the case. 

"Very truly yours, 
"Henry A. Wise." 

The Wise letter speaks volumes. It makes my situation 
another Dreyfus case. Let them hang me if they dare. The 
people are now suspicious. They are convinced that I was 
justified in concluding that I could not have a fair trial at 
the hands of prosecuting officials who were endeavoring to 
force me to trial, sick and weak without a lawyer, utterly 



182 My Political Trial and Experiences 

defenseless. I paid Henry A. Wise $1,000 as a retainer. 
I was entitled to his services, but Government officials forced 
him out of my case by threats, lies, insinuations, and thus I 
was deprived of a very sacred constitutional right. The least 
they should do — if they aim to hang me — is to leave my lawyers 
alone. The people of England would kick any prosecuting 
ofificial out of office who would create such a scandal and thus 
defame English justice* 

June 25th to 29th, I am now settling down to the weary 
humdrum of prison life. My case goes over to the Fall. 
John's goes on trial again on Monday, July Ist. I'll testify 
for him again after which I shall spend the Summer of 1918 
with Warden Hanley and his keepers behind prison bars. 

July 1st to 3d. John on trial. I may be called any day 
now. Am watching and waiting and reading the newspapers, 
my only means of securing information. The newspapers 
have lost interest in the case. Their reports are perfunctory 
now. John's first trial satisfied the American people that the 
government's charges are groundless. 

•Although the British government was determined from the start to 
execute Sir Roger Casement, it nevertheless permitted a member of the Englisb 
bar to defend him and the Court complimented counsel upon the skilful 
defense. 



XVII 
REFLECTIONS IN THE TOMBS 

July 4th. Independence Day. '"All men are created equal ! 
All governments derive their just powers from the consent 
of the governed, Man has been endowed by his Creator with 
certain inalienable rights among which are life, liberty and 
the pursuit of happiness." — Declaration of Independence. 

I celebrate the day by reading the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence. What a treasonable document ! How seditious ! 
How anti-British ! How strong ! How virile ! How courage- 
ous! How true! England was looking for the man who 
wrote it and those who signed it to hang them as traitors. 
Behold the bold signature of John Hancock, the first on the 
list! There's the name of Jefferson, its author; John Adams, 
the rebel from New England, and Benjamin Franklin, the 
political philosopher from Philadelphia — all "traitors" accord- 
ing to England. Here am I, fool, who took it to heart, slept 
with it, learned it by rote. If the signers returned to earth to- 
day, they would hold another Continental Congress. I wouldn't 
put my worst enemy in jail, but if they did come back I'd join 
their patriotic army and advocate treatment of the Tories as 
James Madison treated them during the War of 1812, by 
respecting their rights. 

It has come to pass that Washington's Farewell Address 
is a dead letter in America. American soldiers are in Europe, 
actually fighting. Washington said: "x\void all European 
entanglements and wars." President Woodrow Wilson says 
"Get into them." In one of his speeches he referred to those 
who preach "ancient policies of isolation." Well, I agree with 
Washington, and the Tombs prison is my reward. Here I 
must listen to the vile bowlings of impious wretches, yet I 
am proud. It is good for me to be here. Anglomaniacs call 
me vile epithets now but when the smoke has cleared his- 

183 



184 My Political Trial and Experiences 

tory will justify me, will show that I stood by Washington 
to the end. If my fate be death, be it so. If it be life imprison- 
ment, be it so. If it shall be contumely, be it so. I bow to 
God's will. Washington also said something about "tools and 
dupes who usurp the confidence and applause of the people." 
They are on the outside. He also remarked, "Real patriots 
who resist the intrigues of the favored nation shall become 
suspected and odious." To which I may add "prisoners await- 
ing trial for their lives." Apparently Washington understood 
Tory intoleration, free speech for themselves, jail for those 
who diflfer with them. 

Up on the wall is my flag, the American flag. The draft 
blowing from the top ventilator to the bottom of my cell 
is actually waving its folds. As from some great building 
towering to the skies, Old Glory waves. If that flag could 
only speak; if its red could only find its way into the veins 
of heroic men who are sleeping now at Lexington, Concord, 
Saratoga and Yorktown and give them life, how happy I'd 
be. If its stars could only shine again as on the night before 
Yorktown when the slumbering Irish in the army of Rocham- 
beau slept peacefully in Yankee tents before the morrow which 
dawned on the day when British military power was broken 
on the American continent until now, what happiness would be 
mine. If its white, symbolical of purity and truth, could only 
purge the present order of things of dishonest opinions, hypo- 
crisy and humbug, how glorious our country would truly be. 
Alongside the stars and stripes is the tri-color of Ireland, 
ominously still, as though waiting in suspense for Justice to 
give it life. That flag was carried on the streets of Dublin 
during Easter week, 1916. I have it here. It was sent in 
by a devoted friend to console me, and comfort me it does. 
In the right hand comer is a tatter where a British bullet 
ploughed through. Otherwise it is intact. I would like to 
have the flag carried at Bunker Hill as the tri-color's com- 
panion. The Declaration of Independence is here and so is 
Washington's Farewell Address and Ethan Allen's story of 
his cruel imprisonment after his capture by the British at 



Reflections in the Tombs 185 

Quebec. Some of Jefferson's volumes are here. All I need 
to make the picture complete is the banner of the Thirteen Stars. 
There are some other thoughts in my mind. I am think- 
ing of the Irish race in America ; why haven't they been more 
militant in this crisis? The day will come when the Amer- 
ican people will turn to Washington again. Why aren't they 
sagacious enough to see that those who uphold his ideals 
now will be the pioneers of the great reaction which is inevi- 
table? I have before me my letter written in June, 1917, when 
war policies were in the making, demanding an Irish Race 
Convention. It makes very interesting reading now. It is 
addressed to James K. McGuire, Chairman of the Friends of 
Irish Freedom. This letter is my best title to Americanism. 
It makes my position on the present issues clearer than any- 
thing I have yet written.* 

I heard nothing from any male members of the Irish race 
yet. Are they afraid to write? The women are not. I have 
received numerous letters from good devoted American women 
of Irish descent. They are very encouraging and sympathetic. 
They express confidence in my innocence. God bless these 
brave true-hearted women ! My mind travels across the ocean 
to Ireland where De Valera, Griffith and other leaders of 
the Irish people are in prison. They are held because of the al- 
leged plot of which the press has made me the central figure. 
Lloyd George boastfully declares that the evidence of the 
"plot" was furnished the British Government by "a friendly 
foreign power" — the United States, of course. The Irish people 
are standing by their imprisoned leaders and the Cause is 
advancing because they are following that true Irish policy. 
I reflect upon the sacrifices of the American soldiers in Belgium 
and France. They are fighting to make the world safe for 
democracy, for the rights of small nations and not for gain 
or conquest. Very good. I don't know whether I'll live to 
see the end of this thing, but if I do, I dare say that it will 
come out as it always has where England is involved. If 
the Allies win, England will grab everything and Uncle Sam 
will get the worst of it. If the Germans win, England will take 

* This letter is printed in the Appendix^ 



186 My Political Trial and Experiences 

good care of herself, and Uncle Sam will get the worst of 
it. With these reflections and observations I bring this day's 
writing to a close. For me it has been a sad and reflective 
one. Outside, the Nation celebrates the destruction of the 
very ideals the Day has been set apart to revere. We can't 
be fighting to perpetuate the cruel imperial power of the 
empire from which we wrung our liberties and yet be true 
to these ideals. We cannot consistently be in accord with Eng- 
land which holds Ireland against her will now, and celebrate 
a day when we resisted the cruelty of the same imperialism. 
They don't harmonize. Something is wrong. 

July 9th to 15th. Was down to Court this week and testi- 
fied as before. I found my wife in a very bad and nervous 
condition and our children puzzled over my absence. Their 
question, "When are you coming home. Daddy?" must be 
answered by President Woodrow Wilson, who holds the key 
to my cell. His is the hand that keep my children's "Daddy" 
in this wretched place. He is fighting for the new-born demo- 
cracy, and I, for the Jefferson and Andrew Jackson brand. He 
is fighting for the fustian variety which the "New York 
Times" admires ; I am more interested in the brand Jefiferson 
wrote into the Declaration of Independence, the kind that was 
won by Washington with his sword. They regret the Amer- 
ican Revolution, I glory in it. They are on top today; I am 
where Washington would have been had the British caught 
him on his "chicken ranch" at Valley Forge. On July 10th, I 
received a letter which cheered me very much. It came from 
a woman. I regret that some of those Irishmen who have 
been twisting the lion's tail for the last twenty years haven't 
seen this : 

"5076 Page Boulevard, 

"St. Louis, Mo., July 8, 1918. 
"Dear Mr. O'Leary : 

I shall not waste time introducing myself. It is not neces- 
sary. Just let me say, I am only one of many from the Pa- 
cific to the Atlantic who have faith and pride in you, and 
absolute belief in your innocence. It h^-s often been my 



Reflections in the Tombs 187 

privilege to hear you speak; to me you stood for all that is 
fine in American democracy but then, I, too, am a lover of 
Jefiferson. You will emerge from your present difficulty with 
flying colors if right triumphs, and you will meet your trials 
with head uplifted and unafraid like all the fine men of the 
race. Is there anything in the world that you want? I know 
many devoted and loyal hearts that would move heaven and 
earth for you, and yet they are forced by existing conditions 
to remain helpless and inert. But they are with you in spirit 
and in heart, praying for you, thinking of you, suffering 
with you. If human love and human sympathy can penetrate 
the cruel walls of a prison, you must know that we, your people, 
are with you, solidly behind you to the end, loyal, true and 
unafraid. We have full belief in your innocence and the firm 
conviction that truth must triumph in the end. I am sure you 
are proud to suffer with De Valera and Arthur Griffith and 
the other noble souls who are accused of plotting with you. 
At least, you are numbered in goodly company and share with 
them our people's love. Before I left New York last Monday 
with some other friends, I tried to have Warden Hanley take 
some fruit to you without success. Surely they did not think 
one Sinn Feiner would poison another. The next time I 
write I shall tell you of the various expressions of sympathy 
offered to you by the man who put up the fruit, the sub- 
way guard, and even policemen on their beats. We felt the 
people's pulse that day and did not find the name of "Jerry" 
O'Leary anathema to the common people. After all they are 
the only ones that matter. We are proud of you — proud of 
your high courage and determination. Always remember 
this: The great hearts of your own people beat for you and 
the throbs will be felt by you before long. God bless you, as 
we Irish say. 

"Faithfully yours, 

"Mary Brennan." 

This is an excellent sample of letters I have received from 
Miss Alice O'Reilly, Mrs. Mary Schulte, Dr. Gertrude B. 



188 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Kelly, Mrs. Savage, Joseph G. McGarrity of Philadelphia, and 
many others. 

July 15th to 24th. I saw my wife once more, also my father, 
mother, sisters, brothers, and many friends at the Marshal's 
office in addition to Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly, the first person to 
call at my home and offer assistance after my first indictment 
in November, 1917. "If I can help you, just call on me. 
I am at your service," is her spirit. My wife informs me that 
Dr. Kelly has been very attentive. The only visitor I have 
had at the Tombs has been Paula Schulte, daughter of Mrs. 
Mary Schulte, one of my staunchest friends. Paula is the 
only person thus far who has been able to secure a pass to 
see me. She comes almost every day. I see her in the visit- 
ing house for half an hour where she tells me what's going 
on in the outside world. This visiting house is a separate 
building connected with the prison proper. It consists of two 
tiers or floors. There are about forty stalls resembling con- 
fession boxes. On one side sit the prisoners, a partition 
separating each. On the other, the visitors with the same ar- 
rangement. Between visitors and prisoners is a space about 
eighteen inches wide running the full length or width of the 
visiting house. Two very thick heavy wire screens which 
almost completely obscure the faces of visitors from the prison- 
ers and the prisoners from the visitors, one on the visiting 
box of the prisoner, the other on the box of the visitor per- 
form the function of prison bars. This is a cruel contrivance, 
devised I am told by Mrs. Katharine Davis when she was 
Commissioner of Corrections. Women can be ingeniously 
cruel when they want to be. If Katherine Davis had to see 
her loved ones through such a contraption she would remove 
it at once. 

A keeper paces back and forth on the prisoner's side, and 
occasionally gazes through the space between the visitors and 
the prisoners. In each stall is a stool and a sort of shelf 
or table on which to rest the arms. The noise of this place is 
terrible. When twenty prisoners are visiting on a tier the 
house is like a bedlam, one shouting louder than the other, 



Reflections in the Tombs 189 

requiring persons who desire to make themselves heard to strain 
the voice. Miss Schulte and myself spent most of our visiting 
time listening to others. Conversations are occasionally very 
funny. One day this week I heard my name mentioned and 
listened to this colloquy! Visitor — "Have you seen O'Leary 
yet?" Prisoner — "No." Visitor — "I wish I could get a good 
look at him." Prisoner — "I don't know where he is. They say 
he is on the boy's tier and I am on the eighth." Visitor — 
"1 hope he beats his case." Prisoner — "They have nothing on 
him." At this point I interrupted to say "You bet they 
haven't." Visitor— "Who's that?" Prisoner— "I don't know." 
Paula Schulte giggled and I answered, "It's O'Leary." The 
prisoner jumped out of his visiting house and came to my 
stall and shook hands, his friends came to where Miss Schulte 
sat and sent their greetings and good wishes across the screens. 
The man — Bryce by name — had been arrested because he would 
not submit to the draft. He had never filed his declaration 
to become a citizen and claimed he could not be drafted. 

During the week "Rocky Mountain" O'Brien called. I 
was overjoyed to see him. He gave me strong words of en- 
couragement, and said a few things about folks on the outside 
whom he described as "running away." 



XVIII 

CELEBRATES BIRTHDAY IN JAIL. 

July 24th. My birthday. Thirty-seven years ago I was born 
at Glens Falls, N. Y. I am to have a birthday party today. 
My wife has arranged with Marshal McCarthy who promised 
to bring me down to his office in the Federal Building, for 
the event, I am surprised and pleased at this good news. 
I go down and meet my wife and four children. My wife's 
aunt, Miss Anna Livingstone, her cousin, Miss Prendergast, 
my father, mother, sisters Marguerite and Alice, brothers 
John, Alexis, some of my wife's devoted friends, Mrs. Ella 
Caddie and Margot Morris, Miss Schulte, Miss Lillian Mac- 
Creedy, and several others. A nice luncheon had been pre- 
pared by those present, beautiful red roses on the Marshal's 
desk, cigars and candy, everything but music. I returned at 
5 o'clock, tired and eager to get back to my cell. I am not 
used to excitement now. It tires me. I am very blue as a 
result of the excitement and relaxation. Visits make prison 
harder to bear. The sensation of parting is bitter. When 
I was ready to go, everybody said, "good-bye," or kissed 
me, and left me alone with the Marshals who fingered at their 
handcuffs until my guests were well out of the building. On my 
way to the Tombs, I gaze along the streets in the hope that I 
may catch a glimpse of some of them, but they are gone. 

I am deeply grateful to Marshal McCarthy for his kindness. 
What makes it hard for McCarthy is that he is a friend and 
college-mate of my brother, Arthur. I remember one night 
at an elocution contest conducted by Manhattan College, hear- 
ing McCarthy orate. He was a boy then and full of ambition. 
Arthur won the contest but "Tom" as they called him ac- 
quitted himself with credit. Life is very strange indeed. 
McCarthy went into politics and, an appointee of President 
Woodrow Wilson, is now my jailer. Be it so. He has traveled 

190 



Celebrates Birthday in Jail 191 

the road of the world. I have remained true to the orations 
I heard him recite. I loved to hear them and to recite them. 
To me they meant more than the sound of the voice or the 
euphony and thunder of the words. They were the convic- 
tions of great men, heroically expressed, preserved to inspire 
and to create. Long ago I fell under their spell. Now, I pay 
the price. 

Marshals O'Flaherty and Mead had me in charge today. 
They are very kind. It is almost a pleasure to know they 
will take me out or bring me back. How different is my 
treatment at the hands of McCarthy to the way Irish political 
prisoners are treated in Ireland and England. 

Thank God, I have some alleviating experiences. Here in 
the Tombs all is kindness from the marshals and the keepers. 
They are mostly Irishmen. That's the reason. My keepers, 
Felix McCarron and Thos. Colton, and my night keeper John 
Funk are most considerate. On the eighth tier are John Boyle 
and Hugh Cooney, the first born in New York, the other 
in County Cavan, Ireland. On the third are Thos. Hanley, 
Irish born and William Donohue, American born; on the 
second, in charge of Willard Robinson are John Quinn, Ameri- 
can born and James Martin, Irish born, and on the first tier, 
Patrick Coffey and John Crowley, both bom in Ireland. They 
are all interested in my case and are confident of my vindica- 
tion. On the sixth tier are Robert Kohler, a German American 
and John O'Connor, American born, who has five sons in the 
war. On the seventh are Wm. Reynolds, American born, and 
James McDermott, Irish born, and on the fourth a man named 
Fried and John Kane. All are humane men. They extend 
birthday greetings today as they leave for their homes at seven 
o'clock. 

July 25th to 30th. The weather this week has been warm 
and very uncomfortable. The tier men struck and refused 
to work. I helped McCarron adjust the trouble. For exer- 
cise I box with the open hand and run foot races around 
the tier. Exercise is good here. I take an hour's walk in the 
yard every day. Father Evers calls occasionally. Several 



192 My Political Trial and Experiences 

priests have paid me a visit. One came from Dublin, another 
from Canada. They asked to meet me. I hope they weren't 
disappointed. 

July 31st. My wife called at the Tombs to see me for the 
first time. We visit and talk about the family and other things. 
She looked well — ^today. 

August 1st to 31st — 

A month of Dante's Inferno. Heat such as the Tombs has 
never seen before makes my stay here warm and memorable. 
I am suffocated at night by sultry heat, scorched by day by 
torrid heat. At night about 10 o'clock I throw up entrench- 
ments against crawling things. No system of cleanliness can 
prevail in a place where unkempt, dirty men are constantly 
coming and going. There is some consolation, however, in the 
thought that they have the same visitors in France. During 
the month I aid in securing the release of three British sailors 
from the Adriatic, arrested for assaulting a negro sailor on the 
same boat. Apparently England's white and colored subjects 
don't get along very well together. I did it because one had 
a starving father, and the others starving wives and children 
in Liverpool, and yet I am accused of being anti-British. 
These boys couldn't get a British subject in New York to 
help them, and I succeeded in turning them loose. I used 
my legal knowledge, of course, and charge them what I always 
get here — nothing. That makes about twenty-five boys or men 
I have succeeded in helping out of this place. The list in- 
cludes the Frenchman from Massachusetts and the young Irish- 
American boy who was accused of robbery in the first degree. 
I also induced one man to tell the government the truth about 
his mail peculations. In doing so, I aided my enemies, the 
Secret Service, to solve a mystery which had baffled them. In 
another case I aided in freeing three American sailors in uni- 
form, by showing them how to interest their local Congressmen 
and by writing their letters for them. In the case of one sailor I 
succeeded in interesting Josephus Daniels in his case by writing 
letters for him. Judge Learned Hand suspended sentence on 
them and out of his own pocket paid their carfares home. 



Celebrates Birthday in Jeiil 193 

Judge Learned Hand is a true instrument of justice. He 
allays crime by mercy, judiciously exercised. If any man 
imagines that crime is not allayed by mercy let him spend a 
few months in the Tombs and learn how men are hardened 
and embittered by judges who are said "to have no use for 
Italians" or, for "Jews" or, for the "Irish" or for "Negroes" 
irrespective of the merits of their cases. The judge who is 
unnecessarily severe makes criminals. The judge who permits 
race hatred to add to a sentence makes anarchists. He may 
send one particular man away for twenty years but he hard- 
ens a hundred others who curse him when that man cursing 
himself comes back from Court. 



XIX 

THE "SLACKER" RAID. 

September 1st to 30th. Things of importance have trans- 
pired during this month, notably the "Slacker" Raid.* On 
September 23d, I was placed in what is known in the Tombs 
as "a line up." 

One night while endeavoring to sleep, I was disturbed 
by the telephone ringing. Jack Funk, my keeper, answered 
the call and said, "They are sending down about three hun- 
dred slackers." In about half an hour approximately fifty 
young men came herded up stairs, the steel doors clanged and 
they marched over to the keeper's desk. The newcomers 
seemed more or less dazed and gazed around in bewilderment 
at the barred scene which confronted them. Some were well 
dressed, others were slovenly and unkempt. I had read about 
the raid in which the secret service men. United States Mar- 
shals, the American Protective League, soldiers and sailors, 
fanatics and busybodies went through the city and arrested 
every man who looked within the draft age and who had no 
card. The prisoners were packed into moving vans and auto- 
mobiles and whisked away to armories without a chance to 
explain. White men had been arrested by negroes, confusion 
and consternation prevailed everywhere. Men were frantic 
and wives awaiting their husbands were apprehensive when 
they did not return home because Mr. De Woody and Marshal 
McCarthy had them in custody. Well, here they are. Keeper 

* The "slacker" raid was a coup organized by the Department of Justice 
in which soldiers in uniform, police, special United States marshals. United 
States marshals, members of the American Protective League, a secret associa- 
tion authorized by the Department of Justice to assist it, the Home Defense 
Guard, and promiscuous others, whites and blacks participated. Without 
warrant, citizens were arrested indiscriminately if they appeared to be within 
the ages of twenty-one and thirty-one and could not produce at the moment a 
draft registration card. The armories and other public buildings were filled 
with indignant citizens who were held all day and all night without permission 
to communicate with their families or friends. Some of them found their 
way into the Tombs. These raids created widespread consternation and pro- 
tests, violative as they were of the constitutional right of the theoretically 
sovereign citizen. 

194 



The "Slacker" Raid 195 

Funk is alone. He has two tiers on his hands. His clerical 
work is considerable. Here are fifty men who could mob him, 
take his gun away and turn every prisoner in the Tombs 
loose. He comes to my cell and says : "Jerry, will you give 
me a hand with these slackers?" I am delighted. He opens 
my cell, and I become a clerk. My duties are to take their 
names, and the slips given them downstairs by the Department 
of Justice and make a record. After doing so I assign them to 
cells. 

One "slacker" is in tears. He runs a vegetable store, went a 
couple of blocks from his home, left his wife in charge, was 
grabbed by a member of the American Protective League and 
whisked away to jail. "My wife will die," he wails. "I must 
telephone her," but he cannot, poor fellow. Another hands me 
his yellow paper and I note at the bottom, "This man is a Finn, 
detain him." This case is very interesting. A man over the 
draft age is detained because he is a Finn. Finland has won 
her freedom ; thus making Finns here the enemies of our 
country. Shame! Is this Wilson democracy? Apparently it 
is the democracy of the Administration now in power. There 
are other cases, one worse than another, all outrageous. Of all 
those men arrested, the most complacent are those of Irish 
blood. They have a sense of humor and laugh at their predica- 
ment. All of them are talking about the new-born "Democracy." 
Most of these men are released the next day — but some of 
them remain in prison until September 23d. I receive notice 
that the Department of Justice wants me for identification pur- 
poses and that the Warden has ordered a "line-up." Keeper 
McCarron scurries around for about twenty men who are to 
stand in line with me. I am to stand amongst them. A man, 
I know not whom, is here to identify me. I wear little ex- 
cept a shirt, so I put on my coat and hat, take my pipe, some 
tobacco, leave my cell and await developments. I am not 
a bit disturbed, although the Department of Justice has my 
photograph, and I have no doubt that whoever has come to 
identify me has studied the picture and that Agents of the 
Department of Justice have informed him of every detail to 



196 My Political Trial and Experiences 

aid in the identification. I am no criminal, and although my 
face has taken on that pallor which comes to every human 
being confined in murky cells shut out from the light of day, 
that fact will help him if he is intent upon mischief. About 
twenty burglars, murderers, pickpockets, robbers, bond-thieves, 
criminals of all types are assembled. We are placed in line 
by Keeper McCarron, who assures me that I'll get a "square 
deal." He informs me that the man is down on the second 
tier now trying to identify Willard J. Robinson. I cannot 
understand the purpose of it all, unless they are deliberately 
endeavoring to "frame me up." However, this is a decided 
improvement upon the method employed by Mr. Mathews, 
when, upon my arrival from the West, I was put in a chair, 
asked to stand up, alone, before several men who were brought 
in and asked, "Do you know that man? Ever seen him be- 
fore?" The telephone bell rings. Keeper McCarron answers, 
and says: "They are coming now. In the 'line-up' on the 
second tier a murderer was picked out for Robinson." I 
was delighted to hear this. "Get in line!" shouts McCarron. 
We fall in as soldiers do, upon command. I take my place 
alongside a well-known pickpocket. A gong rings on the 
tier below. "All ready!" says Keeper McCarron. The gate 
leading to the fourth tier opens and up the stairs step three 
men, with Deputy Warden Bremel, in full uniform. Surely, 
this is a solemn and dramatic scene. It reminds me of a 
lodge initiation. Every man in line stands like a soldier at 
attention, head erect, gazing towards the group which has just 
entered. "Where is the man to make the identification ?" asks 
Keeper McCarron. "Here he is," says a clean-cut, dark young 
fellow with a soft felt hat. "Who are you?" asks McCarron. 
"An agent of the Department of Justice," he replies. "Stand 
over there" requests McCarron, directing him to the rear, 
where he is placed out of communication with the person as- 
signed to make the identification. An elderly man with the 
party is also ordered to "stand back." "Is Jeremiah A. O'Leary 
in the line?" asks Deputy Warden Bremel. "Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary is in the line," answers Keeper McCarron. Turning 



The "Slacker" Raid 197 

to the man who is to make the identification, Deputy Warden 
Bremel remarks : "Jeremiah A. O'Leary is in the line. Look 
the men over carefully, back and front, take your time and 
be sure you have the right one before you make your 
pick." The man, pale and visibly nervous, turns and 
faces the line. I have never seen that face before. He 
looks very anxious and afraid he may make a mistake. 
This is a very tense and dramatic moment for both of us, 
particularly for me, when I know that the man before 
me has been studying my picture and, unless he is a fool, 
should be able to pick me out anywhere from it. He starts 
at the head of the line and studies each face carefully. He 
looks at me and passes on. The pickpocket alongside me, he 
studies for at least three minutes. As he stands there the 
thief looks up, down and to the right and left, feigning ner- 
vousness. He lurches forward and backward, and anxiously 
moves his hands. The identifier watches him and for a mo- 
ment is on the verge of picking him out, and no doubt would 
have done so had he not made the terrible blunder in the 
case of Willard J. Robinson only a few minutes before. Every 
eye in the line is now straining. I almost laugh outright as 
he watches one of the most notorious pickpockets in the coun- 
try, who is serving six months for merely riding on a surface 
car. The identifier suddenly decides to look over the rest of 
the line. Perhaps, he has been so advised. He walks along 
studying each face. When he reaches the end of the line, 
he stands off and again surveys it. It is apparent that every 
man wants to be identified except myself. After spending 
fifteen minutes in observation, going back over the line this 
time from the rear to the head of it, he finally says, "He 
is not in the line." He is not in the line! That means the 
man he has in mind is not before him. I watch the Agent 
of the Department of Justice, excited and disappointed, flushed 
with anxiety. He now moves toward the identifier and makes 
a motion, says something inaudible to me. In an instant 
Felix McCarron jumps towards the Agent and says, "None of 
that ! None of that. You can't do that around here. Every 



198 My Political Trial and Experiences 

man here gets a square deal," at the same time placing his hand 
against the Agent's chest and forcing him back to his original 
position by a powerful push of his powerful arm. The 
Agent then says, "Have them take their hats ofif?" He is 
desperate — plainly and bitterly disappointed. He said some- 
thing to McCarron in anger and received this rebuke. "I 
don't care who you are, you can't pull off that stuff around 
here." Later I learned the agent said, "I am from the Depart- 
ment of Justice." The whole party left the tier for a few 
minutes. The men in line removed their hats and I changed 
position leaving my pickpocket friend standing this time along- 
side a man charged with murder. The party returns and re- 
sume their original positions. This time the identifier has 
assumed a more confident and determined appearance. His 
pallor has gone. Our hats are oft". My hair is his only, his 
best hope. I have hair which now is a decided menace. Any 
man would pick me out by my hair alone, so I prepare for 
what I believe is quite likely to happen. Fortunately there 
are two other men in line whose hair resembles mine. On 
these I place my only hope. He begins again, taking a survey 
of the fine, this time from the head of it. The first thing and 
practically the only thing that seems to interest him is the 
hair. He looks at the hair of every man in line. He has 
clearly been specially instructed upon that. He studies the 
first man in line with curly hair, then passes on to me, and 
studies me about half a minute. I look him straight in the 
eye and as he passes by me, I smile. He goes to the third man 
with wavy hair and strange to say studies him for about five 
minutes, he come back, looks at me in passing only casually, 
returns to the head of the line, takes a last look at the other 
man with bushy hair, turns to the Deputy Warden and says, 
"He is not there." The keeper answers, "All over, go to your 
cells." Following orders we walk around the tier to our 
respective cells, and gossip about the identifier of the De- 
partment of Justice and his methods. The men are happy. 
Their sympathies are with me. The pickpocket almost, wept 
because the man did not pick him out as Jeremiah O'Leary. "I 



The "Slacker" Raid 199 

had a cud of tobacco in my mouth," he says "and I would have 
given it to him between the eyes." Such was his cultured and 
dignified remark. The gossip of every man centred on the effort 
the Agent of the Department of Justice had made to reach and 
speak to the identifier. "He wanted to point you out," they 
said. "Gee! wasn't he sore?" was another remark. But the 
thought uppermost in my mind was this: if an Agent of the 
Department of Justice would do such a thing before my eyes 
and before so many witnesses, what will he do when he is 
alone and perfectly safe from observation and detection? If 
this is the kind of justice I am to receive, then God help me, 
and God help American justice ! However, the experience 
was thrilling and well worth the anxiety of the exciting half 
hour through which I had just passed. 

Subsequently I learned that the Government had several 
other witnesses to bring in, but to date they have not ap- 
peared. Apparently, Warden Hanley's fair methods are not 
the Government's. Had I been forced to stand alone and the 
identifier in my presence, had been asked, "Is that the man 
you saw?" he would have answered, "Yes," because when he 
found he had failed he seemed to feel as disappointed as the 
Government agents present, one of whom went through all 
kinds of contortions, facial and manual, as the identifier stood 
for a minute before me. Such a method of identification 
as the one described — the line-up — is unquestionably fair, pro- 
viding the identifier is not coached by a photograph or by sug- 
gestion and is compelled to act upon his memory. I have seen 
several line-ups since I have been here, and only in two cases 
have the identifiers picked out the proper man. In both cases 
they went directly to the man and recognized him without 
hesitation. Where the identifier hesitates and studies, his 
conduct is conclusive proof that either he doesn't know his 
man or is acting under instructions. 

Another incident worthy of an entry in my diary occurred 
during this month of September. While the slacker raid I 
have described was being conducted, there appeared on my 
tier a man who was "planted" there by the Department of 



200 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Justice to watch me, and if possible, to engage me in conversa- 
tion. He was not on the tier two hours before I knew his 
identity. Every man brought in is questioned and observed 
by the prisoners who are employed about the tier. These run- 
ners go errands for men locked in their cells. They are clever 
and quick to secure information, and have a loathing for what 
they call, "stool-pigeons." I am on the boy's tier where lads 
between the ages of sixteen and twenty-one are confined. 
Adults are not permitted on this tier. I was placed here spe- 
cially by the Warden at the instance of the Department of 
Justice, because, when I came in, my brother John was con- 
fined on the first tier, Willard J. Robinson, on the second, 
Albert Paul Fricke on the fourth, Carl Roediger and other 
Federal prisoners on the eighth. The Government ordered the 
prisoners in my case separated so that we could not com- 
municate with each other, and those orders were scrupulously 
obeyed, although for humanity's sake the Government should 
have kept political prisoners together and separate from crim- 
inals. As a result of this order the man whom the Govern- 
ment placed on my tier to spy upon me, was over age and 
every man on the tier knew there must be a reason for it. 
They soon learned that he was a Federal prisoner. They ques- 
tioned him shrewdly but he could not explain the charge 
against him. In a moment of confidence, he told one of 
the "runners" that the Government was paying for his meals. 
The night he was first admitted to the Tombs he sent a note 
to Keeper McCarron by one of the tier "runners," directing 
that a telephone message be sent "to Mr. Burke at the 
Custom House." The "runner" told this to another pris- 
oner and in due time the gossip came to me. I knew this 
Mr. Burke to be one of the secret heads of the Department 
of Justice in New York. The cat was out of the bag. I 
began an inquiry and soon found out about the Government's 
order to the Tombs' restaurant. In a few days the "spy" 
was buying meals for the "runners," and spent much of his 
time loitering about my cell. All the prisoners knew he was 
a "spy." In the Tombs the lives of spies are always in danger. 



The "Slacker" Raid 201 

Accordingly one afternoon about 4 o'clock, I learned of this 
plot by two men charged with murder to kill the "spy." The 
plan was very simple. It was to go into his cell, throw a 
blanket over his head and kill him by crushing in his skull 
with a piece of pipe that had been unscrewed from the shower 
baths on the tier. It was providential that I learned of this 
in time. I immediately communicated my information to 
Keeper McCarron. The men involved were locked in their 
cells immediately and before they could do damage the "spy" 
had been taken out. If this plot had succeeded, I would 
be blamed and no amount of explanations would have saved 
me. Criminals in the Tombs have a murderous distrust of 
what they call "Stool-pigeons." Men who are sent into the 
Tombs disguised to intermingle with prisoners and secure 
information run great risk of being killed. Many have been 
sent to the electric chair by such men. "Stool-pigeons" were 
used in the Baif case, Musica, the man William Randolph 
Hearst exposed, being one notable instance. I count myself 
fortunate to have prevented a tragedy although the intended 
victim was trying to do me all the harm possible. The man 
would have been murdered, his body would have been found in 
his cell, no one would have heard it, and a mystery and tragedy 
that would have shocked the country would have resulted from 
the efforts made to ruin me. Matters of this kind are kept 
secret in the Tombs, because if published, they would serve 
to instigate similar crimes. The less the criminal knows about 
such things, the better. In such a case ignorance means more 
safety. The keeper is always in danger from such attacks. 
Very frequently through information from friendly prisoners, 
the keeper averts plans that may mean escapes and even mur- 
der. To unearth and discover such things is part of the duty 
of the keeper. His position is highly dangerous at all times. 
Criminals are always desperate. There is something about 
confinement, the lock and key, the restraint, the care and the 
precautions taken, which inspire prisoners to escape from 
custody — to break jail. 



XX 

EVILS OF SYSTEM IN TOMBS. 

I have now reached a subject I have long intended to dis- 
cuss — the unjust and inadequate compensation paid to keep- 
ers in the Department of Correction of the City of New York. 
It was a matter of painful astonishment to me, as I am sure 
it would be to the public to learn the miserably low salaries 
paid to these deserving officials. They begin work at 7 o'clock 
in the morning. Many of them, because of large families and 
the high rents, are forced to live in the suburbs where rents 
are cheaper, and must get up at 4.30 and at 5 a. m. to get 
breakfast on time for the day's work. They are compelled 
to work every alternate day until 7 p. m., twelve hours of 
vigil. Each keeper on a tier has charge of from fifty to seventy 
desperate criminals. Their duties are manifold. They must 
keep their tiers clean, a difficult task because, watch them as 
you will, prisoners are constantly throwing debris from their 
cells out on the corridor of the tier. The men are exercised 
an hour and a half in the morning and another hour and 
a half in the afternoon. They must be fed. The keeper 
must attend to that. There are calls for prisoners 
continually coming to the tier for the visiting house, for bail, 
and for counsel. There are people, runners and officials, con- 
stantly passing through three gates opening on to the tier 
which, kept locked, must be opened, closed and locked again. 
In addition, the keeper receives prisoners. He must keep books 
of record, must distribute blankets, keep the prisoners decorous 
(an utter impossibility) and with it all, must maintain a 
constant vigil so as to compel all prisoners to comply with the 
prison rules. He must be on the alert for saws, knives and 
weapons which might be smuggled in, must watch out for 
any efforts to smuggle in drugs, for the Tombs always has 
its drug fiends. He gets a day off once every other week 

202 



Evils of System in Tombs 203 

and must work Saturday afternoon and all day Sunday. He 
has seventy-five working hours a week, while the working 
time of city clerical employees, who are better paid, are forty- 
five hours a week. Keepers receive from $1,000 to about 
$1,400 a year, determined by their years of service, whereas 
a policeman, who has comparatively easier work, gets six- 
teen hundred dollars a year for working eight hours a 
day, with fairly easy and restful reserve duty. The keeper has 
to guard from fifty to seventy desperate men, while one police- 
man rarely ever has to take into custody more than one. I 
have known four policemen to guard one prisoner under arrest, 
who, when brought into the Tombs, was placed under the care 
of one keeper, who had perhaps fifty other men, equally as 
desperate, to guard. Such conditions, besides being a menace 
to the life of the keeper, are dangerous to the community, be- 
cause they place the latter at the mercy of desperate criminals 
who can easily take advantage of such conditions and "turn 
out" the prison. When it gets to 4 p. m. the keeper is physically 
and mentally exhausted from strain and labor. From four until 
relief time, seven o'clock, no human being could be anything 
but exhausted in such condition and may easily be victim of any 
desperate effort made for a general escape. Criminals like 
Vincent Gaffney have escaped from the Tombs and the keep- 
ers and the warden have been unjustly blamed. Their en- 
durance is taxed beyond its limit. I know it because I have 
seen it. 

These conditions in the Tombs are a public scandal. They 
are highly dangerous and menacing, and should be known. 
No keeper should be permitted to work over eight hours, 
no keeper should ever be on any tier alone, and a keeper's 
pay should be at least equal to a policeman's since his responsi- 
bility is incomparably greater and his duties are more trying 
because just as the prisoner is confined, the keeper is also 
confined. In a great municipality like New York such things 
are overlooked. The policy which causes such conditions 
may well be called "penny wise and pound foolish." The 
public press should take up this question and rectify it. It 



204 My Political Trial and Experiences 

would prevent escapes, save keepers* lives, preserve discipline, 
protect property and do justice to men who are heroes daily 
by their service and sacrifice. The man who can keep under 
control the types I see here is both a hero and most responsible 
public servant. 

Much is said about the policeman who arrests the criminal, 
but nothing- whatever about the keepers liere who control those 
savages and thus protect the community. The keeper re- 
quires more tact and intelligence than the ordinarv- police- 
man is ever called upon to exercise. Since prison methods 
have become himiane, since the keeper no longer rules with 
bludgeon and physical fear, he necessarily must use tact and 
judgment, and about this place I have seen both exercised 
in an admirable manner. I am in no position now to direct 
public attention to this matter but, please God, if I ever secure 
my liberty I will try to do a much needed public service, by 
advocating a reform in our prison system. Should there be 
a jail deliver}- from the Tombs, the city administration, not 
the Warden and keepers here, would be absolutely responsible. 
Under existing conditions — conditions that can be known 
only to a man placed in my position — the people of the cit>' 
of Xew York may expect a jail deliverA- any time. In my 
humble opinion the only thing which prevents one and which 
has prevented one, is the fact that the prisoners like ^^'arden 
Hanley and don't want to place him in "a bad hole." Even 
criminals appreciate the warm, just impulses of the human 
heart. In the Tombs, kindness and tact are a greater force in 
keeping under restraint the thousands of desperate men who 
enter here annually than the prison bars. Yet the public 
should not depend altogether upon kindness and tact, since 
Hanleys, Ouinns. ^IcCarrons and McDermotts are not bom 
even,' day. Some night or day there may come a "tum-out" 
in the Tombs as a result of tlie conditions I have described. 
Then, perhc^js, jewellers, merchants and other business men 
may pay the price, ^^'hen a prisoner escapes, he hides during 
the day and plunders by night. He must do this to get money 
to live. One desperate escaped criminal might organize a 



Evils of System in Tombs 205 

bank robbery, a jewelry robbery, or any kind of an expedition 
in order to get enough money to travel a long distance. This 
robbery might cost business men thirty or fifty thousand dol- 
lars, which a clever city administration might save by the 
inauguration of a humane system of working hours and by 
improving the morale of the keeper by giving him human 
wages. 



XXI 
IN THE PRISON WARD AT BELLEVUE. 

October 1 to 10. My thoughts now turn to my coming 
trial, October 10. I'll be ready, although I doubt if it will go 
on. Later, my intuition is verified, as John, who has called 
to see me, says that, by arrangement with Assistant District 
Attorney Osborne, who, I have been informed will prosecute 
the case, the trial will be adjourned to October 24th. I'm 
content, although it means more time in jail. There are many 
things in preparation which have not been attended to and 
two weeks means a good deal in more ways than one. 

The Spanish influenza has come to the Tombs. Outside, 
people are dying by hundreds and I am informed prisoners 
have been sent from here to various cemeteries to dig graves 
and bury bodies, owing to the inability of cemeteries to secure 
grave-diggers. Corpses are stacked up in great piles about 
the cemetery gates. Every day men are taken out of here, 
dangerously ill, and occasionally at night I hear the gates 
open and close as some victim is taken to Bellevue. I am 
worried about my family and pray that they be saved from 
the plague, for plague it seems to be. 

October 10. I am brought to Court handcuffed. My case 
is called and adjourned to October 24th, when I am informed, 
it will surely be tried. I meet my wife and children and re- 
turn to the Tombs disconsolate as I see them leave. 

October 10th to 23d. The same old humdrum life — clang- 
ing doors, cursing, swearing, rasping keys, commotion, and 
human beings passing through, some to liberty, others to 
prison for long or short terms, some even to the death-house 
at Sing Sing — palls on every one. 

October 23d. I fear the Spanish Influenza has attacked me. 
I have all the symptoms the newspapers describe. I spent the 

206 




Keeper Felix McCarron. 



In Prison Ward at Bellevue 207 

day in bed imbibing aspirin and rolled in heavy blankets. I 
have a fever, yet do not send for a doctor. I am determined 
to go to Court tomorrow. 

My diary of October 24 says : Entering Court I find Judge 
Cushman of the State of Washington on the bench. News- • 
paper reporters, Messrs. Marshall and Osborne — my prosecu- 
tors — my wife, brother John, Mr, Felder and a few spectators 
are here. I drank two cups of heavy black coffee to stimulate 
me before I left the Tombs, and a slight nausea is the re- 
sult. The Judge announces that the jury must be selected in 
"a couple of hours." Indeed! A couple of hours to select 
a jury to try a man against whom public passion, clamor, vin- 
dictiveness and wrath have been raised, and who faces a 
possible penalty of one hundred and sixty years ! It looks 
very much like a cut-and-dried plan to railroad me. I ask my 
lawyer, Mr. Felder, to fight. He declines the issue. As a re- 
sult of his refusal, sick as I am, I get up and fight myself, telling 
the Judge a few truths when he ruled arbitrarily that for the 
sake of haste I could not question the talesmen about their ac- 
quaintance with Col. Roosevelt, whom we satirized and carica- 
tured in "Bull." After an argument, in which I made clear the 
necessity for the question, Judge Cushman relented and allowed 
the interrogations and thence became more reasonable in his 
rulings. When Court adjourned for lunch, I was in bad shape, 
and in Room 319, which had been assigned to me during my 
trial, I could not eat, being scarcely able to drink a cup of coffee. 
The case went on until 4 o'clock, when seven tentative jurors 
had been selected, after which court adjourned. I was taken 
back to the Tombs with a burning fever, and that night paid 
the penalty for my exertions. I never suffered so much in my 
life. I could get no water, because the spring faucet was 
too strong for me to press, and I had to stay there all night, 
locked in my cell, burning up with fever. Occasionally I took 
aspirin tablets, which Keeper McCarron had secured for me. 
October 25th. When the time came to go to Court the morn- 
ing following I arose and had to hold on to the bars of my 
cell door to save myself from falling. The Marshals came, and 



208 My Political Trial and Experiences 

examined me, the doctor came, took my temperature and pro- 
nounced me ill with Spanish Influenza. They wanted me to 
go to Bellevue. I protested and was allowed to stay. I told 
them I was all right and pretended that I was stronger than I 
really was. 

October 26th. Still ill. At 3 o'clock I am taken to the 
Bellevue prison ward. A new experience. Everything is taken 
from me, and in my pajamas I am put to bed amidst cough- 
ing and moaning patients who crowd the ward, all suffering 
from influenza. One poor fellow across from me is dying. 

October 26th to November 6th. Still at Bellevue. Get up 
today. Mrs. Margaret McCarthy, a special nurse and old 
friend, is with me. 

'November 6th. Today I am visited by two Marshals and 
three physicians, who serve me with a Court order to compel 
me to submit to an examination. I am almost crushed by this 
act of judicial brutality. The Marshals stand over me, the 
doctors are ranged alongside of me. I am seated in a chair 
by my bed. My nurse is in tears. My wife comes in and 
collapses. My lawyers, doctors and everybody who can help 
me are in Court, where they are awaiting me, a convalescent 
from Spanish Influenza. So anxious are they to try me that 
they would kill me. They almost succeeded today. 

November 7th. I am in bad shape after yesterday. When 
the doctors left I had a chill. A new doctor — MacKenzie, by 
name — ^^has been assigned to me today, and although very 
weak and slightly feverish he orders me out of bed. I get 
out. My nurse is worried, but I don't care. I am helpless 
in their hands. Let them kill me if they will. 

November 8th. Still weak and slightly feverish. 

November 9th. Out of bed again by Dr. MacKenzie's orders. 
Today he put me through calisthenics and I almost collapsed. 
I told him I was weak. He did not believe me, and with more 
brutality than I ever thought a human being capable of, he 
tells me that the best treatment for Spanish Influenza is to 
keep the patient on his feet. At 4 o'clock I collapse. An hour 
afterwards I am in a raging fever, and between 7 o'clock and 



In Prison Ward at Bellevue 209 

2 a. m. the following day, I am told by Mrs. McCarthy that 
I came very near passing away. 

November 10th. A new nurse, Miss Peggy Burke, has 
come to relieve Mrs. McCarthy. I am suffering still. 

November 11th. Still suffering, though slightly better. Dr. 
MacKenzie calls and says I am all right. I'll attend to this 
brute at the proper time. 

November 12th. Still very weak, although the fever has sub- 
sided. 

November 13th. Still weak. My temperature on Saturday 
night rose as high as 105 degrees. My heart was kept going 
by stimulants, and my nurse tells me I was very near death. 
She is indignant and denounces the brutality of the Govern- 
ment, which she blames for it. I am quite grateful to Dr. 
Lonergan, for his attention during my crisis. Dr. Steinert 
was afraid to interfere. 

* After lying in the Tombs throughout the fearful heat of 
the summer of 1918, my case was finally moved for trial for 
October 24th. I was suffering from "Spanish influenza," the 
epidemic then being at its height. Althought I was ill on 
the day before, having had bad chills, fever and the usual 
pains and aches, I nevertheless decided to report as being well 
enough to stand trial. When the Marshals McQuade and 
Bowler called for me I was ready, although weak and very 
sick. I thought I could fight it off, hoping it was not the 
dreaded influenza but an ordinary cold. After taking two 
cups of very strong coffee, I walked into the court room. 
Judge Edward E. Cushman of Washington was on the bench. 
The case began. I participated in the work of picking the 
jury, examining jurors on behalf of the American Truth 
Society, one of the defendants, my counsel, Mr. Felder inter- 
rogating on my behalf. At the very outset I objected to the 
jury panel from which Irish names were conspicuously absent. 
Judge Cushman endeavored to stop me but I was determined 
that the people should know what was going on. I demanded 



♦ While convalescing at Bellevue, I recorded this brief review of recent 
events. 



210 My Political Trial and Experiences 

to know where even the few Irish names which had been on 
the panel had disappeared, and found that they had been sent 
to other parts. I declared, "If an American of Irish blood 
is good enough to fight and die for his country on European 
battlefields, as the casualty lists show, he should be good 
enough to sit as a juror in an American Court of Justice." I 
also said a few other things that those responsible for the dis- 
crimination did not like to hear. At noon hour I could eat 
nothing. When the afternoon recess came I was in a state 
of collapse. When the afternoon session was ended I went 
back to the Tombs very ill, ate no supper, went to bed and 
spent a sleepless night. In the morning I was unable to 
leave my bunk. The doctor arrived, then the marshals, and 
finally, about noon, my wife, who was thoroughly frightened. 
The following morning, October 26th, I was removed to the 
Prison Ward at Bellevue Hospital where I was destined to 
remain until the following January. 

Reflecting upon my experiences at Bellevue, I consider 
them extraordinary but I should not care to live through 
them again. The prison ward can best be described by saying 
that it presents a spectacle of criminals, sick. When ordinary 
human beings are ill they are miserable indeed, but criminals 
are more so. Ordinarily abandoned and desperate, they are 
pitiable in the prison ward. Some have relatives and friends, 
but many have none. When I arrived there, the ward — with 
a capacity of about fifty beds — was filled mostly with influenza 
cases. I was placed in a cot directly across from a man dying 
of pneumonia. In his delirium I could hear him repeat dis- 
tinctly "The Valley of the Shadow, The Valley of the Shadow !" 
The "shadow" engulfed him the following day. I was then 
removed and placed alongside an unfortunate wretch who, 
dying of tuberculosis, had shot himself, the bullet entering 
just under the heart. He was held for attempted suicide. To 
my right was an aged derelict suffering from alcoholism who 
spent his hours raving and screaming. A short distance away 
was a dying drug fiend whose curses, ravings and vile language 
intermingled with pathetic appeals for "a shot" as he called it, 



In Prison Ward at Bellevue 211 

almost drove me frantic. Such things did not help my ner- 
vous irritations, one of the pronounced symptoms of influenza. 
How any man could get cured in a bedlam like this, I could not 
understand. My wife asked the government for a private 
room. It was refused, although such requests had been granted 
before. However, I was agreeably surprised to learn that the 
government had consented to permit me to have a special 
nurse, and that Mrs. D. D. McCarthy, an old time "Sinn 
Feiner" had volunteered to attend me. This was a great aid 
to my recovery. Mrs. McCarthy seldom left my bedside, her 
companionship and devoted attention carried my mind away 
from my horrible surroundings, and my eyes as well, a screen 
having been supplied to shut off the view of the prisoners 
about me. 

All went well for about ten days until November 2d when 
without any notice Mr. Osborne sent a physician to examine 
me. I objected. Why should the government want to examine 
me? Was I not in the government's custody? Were not my 
hospital physicians the government's physicians ? There was my 
chart, my bed notes, a full record of my condition, the hospital 
physicians in charge — what more did they want? I grew sus- 
picious because the physician sent — Dr. Henry E. Hale — was 
the same man who had pronounced Dr. Carl Buenz, the Ham- 
burg-American Line Director, physically fit and able to 
serve a sentence of two years. Buenz died about two months 
after he arrived at Atlanta. I knew this and objected. I was 
afraid of a plot to force me to trial while yet a sick man. 
There were rumors that an armistice was about to be signed 
and I thought that Mr. Osborne was determined to force me 
to trial while I was still ill and planned to justify such con- 
duct by a report from Dr. Hale, who could not possibly know 
my condition or understand my case like the attending phy- 
sician, a Dr. Stephen Jewett of the Hospital Staff. I objected 
and refused to permit him to examine me. Finally, upon an 
agreement by Mr. Osborne to permit my own physician, Dr. 
George Stewart, to be present, I consented and was examined 
— Dr. Hale finding I was still suffering from influenza, stated 



212 My Political Trial and Experiences 

that I would require at least a week before being put on trial, 
although I thought it rather strange and unusual for a sick 
man, particularly one suffering from "Spanish Influenza," to 
go from a hospital to a court room and face a two month's 
trial. Usually such a patient needs a period of convalescence. 
Up to this I had not been out of bed and judging by my weak- 
ened and highly nervous condition, I doubted if I would be 
able to get up in a week, much less to leave the hospital. 

The week flew by. I was unable to get up. The government 
was nervous and I was told had been making urgent inquiries. 
The day my trial was set Mr. Osborne actually sent a Mar- 
shal to the hospital after me. I saw him pass in and pass out 
of the ward, and wondered. Finally on November 6th, three 
physicians and two Marshals with a court order directing 
me to submit to an examination suddenly appeared. I was 
sitting in a chair at the time. I was at once thrown into a state 
of nervous excitement, my heart palpitating and perspiration 
running from every pore in my body. I read the order of 
Judge Cushman which follows : 

At a stated term of the United^ 

States District Court held in and 

for the Southern District of New 

York at the United States Court 

House and Post Office Building 

on the 6th day of November, 

1918. 

Present : 

Hon. Edward E. Cushman, 

District Judge. 

United States^ 

against 

Bull Publishing Company,' 

American Truth Society, 

>ss 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary, andf 

others. 

The cause coming on for trial on this 6th day of November, 



In Prison Ward at Bellevue 213 

1918, and the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, having sub- 
mitted an affidavit verified by George R. Stewart, a physician, 
residing in the City of New York on the 4th day of November, 
1918, to the effect that the physical condition of the said de- 
fendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, was such that his attendance 
in Court would endanger his health. 

Now, therefore, in order that the Court may determine the 
physical condition of the said defendant, Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary^ it is hereby ordered that upon the presentation of a 
copy of this order to the said Jeremiah A. O'Leary, that the 
said Jeremiah A. O'Leary submit to a physical examination 
of himself to be made by the three physicians herein designated 
and appointed by said Court for the purpose of conducting a 
physical examination of the said defendant, and informing the 
Court of their opinion as to his physical condition, and it is 
hereby 

FURTHER ORDERED that the following physicians: 
James A. Miller, Henry E. Hale, Clarence H. Smith be ap- 
pointed and designated for the purpose of examining the said 
defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, and reporting to the Court 
under oath after such examination their opinion as to his phy- 
sical condition, and as to whether his attendance in Court would 
endanger the health of the said Jeremiah A. O'Leary and it 
is hereby 

FURTHER ORDERED that the said physicians make such 
a physical examination of the said O'Leary as in their judg- 
ment is necessary in order for them to determine his physical 
condition, and that they report to the Court as soon thereafter 
as possible their opinion as to his physical condition, and as to 
whether his attendance at the trial of his case at this time 
would endanger his health and it is hereby 

FURTHER ORDERED that in case the said defendant, 
O'Leary, refuse to submit to said physical examination that 



214 My Political Trial and Experiences 

the Marshal of the Southern District of New York produce 
him forthwith in Court and that his trial proceed. 

ENTERED 

Edward E. Cushman, 
U. S. D. J. 
After reading Cushman's order, I said: "Gentlemen, this is 
not an order but a blackjack." I asked for the hospital doctor, 
and was informed that he had been subpoenaed to court by 
Judge Cushman. I had my lawyers, including my brother John, 
telephoned for and was informed that they, too, were in court 
before Judge Cushman. I then had my nurse telephone to my 
physician, Dr. Stewart and learned that he, also, had been 
subpoenaed by Judge Cushman. I saw then what I believed 
was a vile brutal plot — the sending of three physicians and two 
burly marshals to my bedside, while everyone who could help 
me had been ordered to court- — and that I was to be examined 
on an order obtained in Star Chamber proceedings without 
notice to my lawyers or physicians, and that if under such cir- 
cumstances I refused, I was to be dragged to court, I there- 
fore decided, sick as I was, to refuse the examination. I 
requested the nurse, Mr. Gray, in charge of the ward to get 
my clothes, and call an ambulance as I had been ordered to 
Court. I then demanded that the Marshals carry out the 
brutal order of Judge Cushman, obtained no doubt upon false 
representations made by the Department of Justice about my 
condition. The Marshals did not move. I felt myself grow- 
ing weaker, and very dizzy and my sight began to grow dull. 
I could feel my heart beating hesitatingly. I seemed scarcely 
able to catch my breath. Just then I heard my wife scream, 
"My God, they are trying to kill him." She had just come in, 
not knowing what was going on. The next I knew one of the 
physicians ran to the telephone, returning almost immediately 
saying: "It's all right; its all off." He had telephoned to the 
Department of Justice. What was said I know not. Out of 
the ward they all ran as though they had done something 
wrong and were ashamed of their conduct. One, at least, 
should have remained to attend me. My wife, who had come 



In Prison Ward at Bellevue 215 

in to visit me and who collapsed upon observing my con- 
dition, came over to me weeping and hysterical. My nurse 
placed me back in bed. Mrs. McCarthy told me afterwards 
that my face had turned blue and ashen. They had desisted 
in time otherwise they might have had a corpse to examine 
or to take to court and place on trial. My heart had been 
weakened by the "Spanish Influenza," I had been and was 
still suffering from the disease, but that mattered little to 
those in the Department of Justice who were endeavoring to 
outrage nature in order to place me on trial before the armis- 
tice was signed. This I later learned from events which fol- 
lowed during the next few days. 

The Department of Justice had not finished its cruel work. 
Although what I have here related had greatly weakened 
me and set me back, I was ordered out of bed the following 
day, Thursday. My physician. Dr. Jewett, a humane man 
was discharged from my case and another physician, Mac- 
Kenzie, a cruel doctor, acting no doubt under orders from or 
inspired by the Department of Justice, ordered me out of bed. 
I protested in vain. Although weak, sick, and unable to stand, 
I was ordered out of bed, I obeyed. On Saturday the price was 
paid. Dr. MacKenzie called Saturday morning, compelled me 
to walk around the prison ward, would not permit me to sit 
down, then ordered me to raise and lower my arms — as an 
athlete might — over my head and down again, and to repeat 
the operation. All of this I did only by the exercise of will 
power because I had no strength. I protested but my protests 
were vain. When he finished, I fell into a chair in a state of 
collapse. That afternoon Doctor MacKenzie ordered me out 
of bed again. After being up two hours, I collapsed completely, 
my temperature ran to 105 degrees and for nine hours — from 
five in the afternoon until two o'clock in the morning — I hov- 
ered between life and death, being kept alive by the administra- 
tion of a powerful heart stimulant. Dr. MacKenzie was at 
dinner and when informed of my condition refused to come 
to me although he had issued orders that no other physician 
should touch my case. It was not until the lapse of six hours 



216 My Political Trial and Experiences 

that Dr. Steinach, of the hospital staff, despairing of Dr. Mac- 
Kenzie coming, finally undertook to treat me. As the direct 
result of this brutality, I was compelled to secure a night 
nurse. Miss Margaret Burke. I suffered a relapse by reason 
of which I was confined at Bellevue until January 8, 1919. 
What was left of my nervous system was completely shattered, 
my hearing has become permanently impaired, my heart affected 
and I am left a wreck of my former self. 

But the Government had defeated its own purposes. Instead 
of speeding my trial they vindicated the apothegm "more 
haste less speed," with the result that while all these things 
were transpiring, the armistice was signed, the war fever, 
hysteria and fanaticism passed and I was thereby enabled to 
secure a trial tolerably fair considering the passions which had 
raged only a few months before. But the government, in the 
sacred name of the American Republic whose humane tradi- 
tions it had ruthlessly violated, had written a chapter which I 
now record with a feeling of shame and humiliation and which 
I know every red blooded American will regard with disgust. 
Even were I the most despicable criminal, I was nevertheless 
a human being and entitled to be treated as such, but no ! ac- 
cording to the ideals of those who were persecuting me, any 
means justified the end. Perhaps if I had been tried as a sick 
man, unable to defend myself I would have been convicted, 
my very weakness would have been accepted as evidence of 
guilt. Perhaps, too, the perjury of Martin, of Gonzales and 
the rest would have been regarded as a patriotic duty instead 
of being received with silence by the press and disgust by all 
those who observed it. At a time of passion this perjury 
would have been welcomed with acclaim by those howling for 
my life. When my trial finally began, I was still very weak 
and grew strong only because Judge Hand ordered the Marshal 
to give me a good supper each night, a meal which digested 
outside the environment of a prison cell, built me up so that 
I secured sufficient strength to bear up the eight hard weeks. 
America is indeed a strange, wonderful place. What one judge 
does, another undoes ! Where one department of the govern- 



In Prison Ward at Bellevue 217 

ment is brutal, another is humane! I should consider myself 
remiss and unappreciative if after what I have written here 
of the Department of Justice as it was constituted in 1918, 
I did not pay a tribute to the humanity and kindness of others, 
to which r, and I hope my fellow Americans, can point with 
pride as a vindication of the conviction every real American 
possesses that where one act of injustice has been perpetrated 
there can always be found an American either to undo or 
ameliorate it. 

November 14th to December 1st. Am convalescing slowly. 

December 1st to 24th. During this period I have regained 
some of my strength, yet I am still weak and very nervous. 
I have observed that my hearing is slightly impaired, my 
heart palpitates, and occasionally I have a suffocating sensa- 
tion, which comes from the heart. My stomach is very bad, 
causing me belching after meals, something I never experienced 
before. The influenza has done this and Dr. MacKenzie's 
brutality has aggravated it. Sometimes I feel depressed and 
melancholy — a new sensation for me. I thank those who 
caused my relapse for their brutality. I can't believe it was 
deliberate. I rather prefer to place it to overzeal or anxiety 
on the part of young men charged with the duty of prosecuting 
me and driven forward by pressure from Washington. I want 
to pay my respects to the good Carmelite Fathers, whose church 
is only a block away, to the Chaplains of Bellevue Hospital, 
to John O'Leary, a cousin, a grocer in the neighborhood, and 
the Misses Mary and Bridget Skelly, Irish girls with golden 
hearts. These men and women have constantly attended me. 
Not a day passes that "Joe" Eastman, a novice at the Carmel- 
ite priory, and Sister Clara, do not visit and bring me 
chicken, fruit and other delicacies sent by Father O'Connor 
of the Carmelite order. Father Maginnis visits frequently and 
comforts me with his newsy chats. Fathers O'Flanagan and 
Slattery have given me many a pleasant call, while Father 
O'Farrell, fiery patriot, has not forgotten me. When on duty 
he visits this sad and melancholy place. As long as I live, 
I shall never forget the constant kindnesses of these good 



218 My Political Trial and Experiences 

priests. True missionaries are they who understand the suffer- 
ings of the sick. They have visited and attended the sick and 
dying here for many years, prayed with them and over them, 
as their souls were passing from this wicked world to a para- 
dise made possible by their spiritual care. Few people know 
the nobility of their work. Their rewards are awaiting them 
in the great storehouse of blessings whence has emanated 
all we have and are. The Skellys have kept me in constant 
touch with the outside world. With the constancy of sisters, 
in rain and snow, they have come and brought words of 
cheer. Outside of my counsel and family, they are the only 
ones who secured the Marshal's pass, a necessary essential 
to visit me here. I also want to record here the fidelity of 
others. Many women of the Irish Progressive League and 
of the Irish Women's Council have called or sent flowers, candy 
and cigars. Father Patrick J. O'Donnell has been here and 
passed a few hours with me on the balcony. But the great- 
est joy of all has been the constant visits of my devoted wife, 
who since July 31st, has not failed to pay me a daily visit 
except when prevented by illness. My children, Robert, Gerald 
and my only daughter, Gertrude, have been frequent visitors, 
while Stephen, the youngest, has forgotten me entirely. He 
actually bawls when I take him in my arms. My nurse, the 
always faithful "Peggy" Burke, who can prove her Irish spirit 
by the fact that she was born in Clare, which first honored 
De Valera, is my constant companion. She saves me from 
association with the sick and convalescent criminals confined 
in the prison ward — a great aid to my recovery. 



XXII 

HAPPY CHRISTMAS IN HOSPITAL. 

December 25th. Christmas Day. At 4.45 I am awakened 
by the strains of that beautiful song, "Holy Night," by Franz 
Gruber. I sit up in bed to find other prisoners in the ward 
doing likewise. The night orderlies open the windows while 
those who are able to leave their beds do so. I put on my 
bathrobe and go to the window beside my bed, and there, 
outside through the night, see the faces of forty nurses illumin- 
ated by candles. Each one carries one in her hand. In a 
procession of twos, they march slowly and solemnly about the 
great court outside, around which the hospital buildings are 
built. It is very dark, nothing but their faces is visible. The 
glow of the candles, the murky night, the visibility of faces 
moving like ghosts slowly along, the solemn echo of forty 
voices chanting a beautiful Christmas song, carry me into 
spirit land. The whole thing is spooky, yet solemn and beauti- 
ful. Feelings of awe are succeeded by inspiration and then by 
thoughts of home. Christmas has never dawned upon me in 
such a striking manner before. A strange feeling comes over 
me. The faces of those around the prison ward show that they 
are similarly affected. I have often heard music floating over 
the water on some still, starry summer night, as I rowed a 
boat over some lake in the mountains. Those were occasions 
when music seemed sweeter than ever before, but now enhanced 
by the situation in which I have been placed and the weirdness 
of what my eyes behold — eyes just opened from a deep sleep 
and still blinking with the dust of the sand man — I am moved 
almost to tears. After ten minutes, this dream, as it might 
very well be called, passes away, leaving nothing but the faint 
echoes which shall remain with me like a memory forever. 

The day passes. In my mail I receive numerous Christmas 
cards from kind friends, every one of which I read, with 

219 



220 My Political Trial and Experiences 

feelings of gratitude since each tells me that I have not been 
forgotten. One, however, is missing, that of an Irish leader, 
the only one who has forgotten me in my present predicament. 
I think of Peter and the cock crowing thrice, of De Valera 
and the boys in jail in Ireland and England, and compare 
the policies of Irishmen in Ireland using British persecution 
to arouse the Irish people with the policy of Irishmen in 
America where it is taken as a matter of course. If by any 
chance I should be convicted, all right, I am a criminal. 
If I fight my way to liberty, all right, I am a patriot. 
I am left to shift for myself. The Socialists are protest- 
ing the persecution of Socialists, but with the exception of 
the Irish Progressive League and Progressive Leaguers, the 
Irish Women's Council, and a few branches of the Friends of 
Irish Freedom like the Columcille, the Holland, the McDon- 
ough, the Sean McDermott and the Carmelite branches, I am 
forgotten. I know my people have me in mind. These cards 
I received todays — mostly from the women — ^prove that, but 
yet no determined program has been laid out to advance the 
great cause by using the sacrifice I and others are now making. 
Such a helpless do-nothing policy appears to me to be stupid 
and inept, as it is un-Irish and un-American. Free speech and 
free press were given to the American people by brave men. 
Those rights denied to me, and for whose triumph I am now 
contending and making great sacrifices are the very founda- 
tion upon which the Irish in America must stand to accom- 
plish any results towards the emancipation of Ireland. Before 
Irish-Americans, and even America herself can aid Ireland, 
America must be free. A people muzzled are a people in 
chains, a people speechless are a people enslaved. Whoever 
dreamed that this mighty Republic of 100,000,000 people could 
be silenced by one man ?* It has been done. I thank God that 
in my case only these prison bars around me have stifled 
my voice and yet for aught I know my voice may at this 
moment be more far-reaching than ever before. 

The Carmelite Fathers have sent me a good turkey dinner. 
My wife has sent me another, and lest I might be without one. 




Robert Emmet, Gertrude, Gerald — Three, of His Children. 



Happy Christmas in Hospital 221 

the good Skelly sisters have sent me another. The Moran 
girls have called, Father O'Donnell of St. Francis de Sales has 
sent cigars by his cousins, the Keanes, Mrs. Grover A. Whalen 
has sent fruit, from the family and friends in Glens Falls, a 
large box containing cigars, cigarettes, tobacco, candy, fruit, 
stockings, neckties and other gifts have come. Mary Brennan, 
Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly, Mrs. D. D. McCarthy, Miss Nora Rut- 
ledge, the Holland Branch of the Friends of Irish Freedom, 
and Clara, the Carmelites' maid, have not forgotten me. My 
wife has sent a beautiful palm, surrounded with flowers. My 
children, Robert, Gerald, Gertrude and even little Stephen 
have sent their gifts, while Mother and Father, Brothers John, 
Arthur and Dan, Sisters Marguerite and Alice have remem- 
bered me. The Prendergast girls, my wife's cousins, have 
added to the collection, while Lieut. Powers, father of Annie 
Powers, a friend of my wife, called personally with a five-pound 
box of delicious candy. The ever-faithful and devoted Morris 
family from Far Rockaway have been most generous. A name- 
sake, Jeremiah O'Leary, and his brother John, cousins, call with 
cigars and edibles, as does also Stephen W. Johnson. Mrs. 
Ethel Crookes, of Philadelphia, sent me a cake, and from every 
direction came either gifts or words of sympathy and cheer. 
John R. Jones, my legal associate and his wife, call upon me. 
From 10 a. m. until 5 p. m. my corner is filled and my bed sur- 
rounded by devoted friends, whom on this day the hospital 
authorities have very generously admitted to my bedside. 

At 5 o'clock, by special permission, my wife and children 
come and I am happy. They bring phonograph records and 
for one hour give a concert to the prisoners, during which 
time my little daughter Gertrude — scarcely three years old, 
in a fairy dress of pink, so beautiful and sweet, the angel that 
she is — goes about the ward with a basket and gives to each 
prisoner a box of candy, wishing him a "Merry Christmas" 
with a bow and baby smile which would warm the heart of the 
most cheerless one. I have never seen so much joy anywhere 
as this little party gives all of us. Surely the chanting of the 
nurses during the darkness of the early morning began a day. 



222 My Political Trial and Experiences 

dreary and cheerless for so many here, which has been bright- 
ened by the thoughtfulness of my devoted wife and the artless 
simplicity of Gertrude, my darling child. I have been lifted 
out of this melancholy place for a fleeting hour by the joyful 
voices of my children and the presence of my devoted wife, 
whose sunny smile seems to have its cloud of sadness. When 
the cruel door closed upon them as they depart before lights 
go out at eight o'clock, I am dropped with a rude thud back 
again into the atmosphere of the prison ward, accentuated by 
the rolling of beds as they are whisked about by the night 
orderlies, or the muffled steps of the night nurses making their 
rounds amongst the patients. Christmas day has been happy, 
but now I am sad and pensive as the reaction from the joy 
of it, the excitement of the day, brings its sorrows with the 
stillness of the night. Under my bed and about my corner are 
boxes of gifts which will present a problem for me during the 
next few days, first to protect them from the burglars about 
me and then to dispose of them. 

My nurse, "Peggy" Burke, left early in the day. When she 
returns tomorrow we'll make an inventory of our stock. 

Dec. 26th to January 10th, 1919. This period brings my 
life in the prison ward of Bellevue Hospital to a close. On 
January 7th I am removed from here to the Tombs. I am 
accompanied to the Tombs by my wife, my brother John, my 
nurse, "Peggy" Burke, and a Tombs keeper, "Jo^iii^y" Boyle. 
We depart in a taxi-cab. I am still very weak. The outside 
world seems strange to me and I am glad to reach the Tombs. 
My heart almost breaks as I part with my children. My 
wife is in tears. "Peggy," my nurse, is also in tears, but I 
smile at both of them as I kiss the children, perhaps not to 
feel their little arms again until the trial begins. It is set for 
next Monday, January 13th, but I am informed it shall be 
adjourned again until January 27th, a wise precaution, since 
I am very weak just now. The question is, can I get back 
my strength in the Tombs where strong men grow weak from 
confinement? I shudder as I contemplate what appears now 
the utter impossibility of this situation. As I am now, the 



Happy Christmas in Hospital 223 

Government has a decided advantage. In normal health I 
could beat them easily. As a wreck of my former self, God only 
knows what will happen. My spirit is strong, but what good 
is a strong spirit when the body is weak? Yet I am confident 
of the outcome as I pray for strength. 



XXIII 

TRIAL AGAIN DELAYED. 

Jan. 10. I go to court and my case is adjourned to January 
27, when, I am informed, that, "it will be surely tried." 

Jan. 10 to 20. John Gill is now in the Tombs, much to my 
surprise. I recognize his laugh and hear it every night. It 
is loud, hearty and distinctive. He is on the 7th tier. On Janu- 
ary 14th I met him as he went down to the visiting house. We 
shook hands warmly. We were glad to see each other. I met 
Willard Robinson who greeted me warmly. I met him on 
January 12th as he went to religious service. He looks well 
after nine months in this hell hole, which, according to "Paddy" 
Howard, the keeper who brings us down to the counsel room, 
"gets" any man who has been in it for six months. But it 
hasn't "got" Robinson. He bears up well. Gill also looks 
good, although he complains of illness, and thinks it may be 
appendicitis. Gill's family is in bad shape. He gives me the 
following copy of a letter he has mailed and which I take 
pleasure in recording in this diary because it is a hiunan docu- 
ment from a man who is suffering patiently. 

Bellevue Hospital, New York City, 
July 14th, 1918. 
My dear Wife : 

I expect to be operated upon for appendicitis. After several 
consultations and examinations by the doctors of the hospital, 
and others, I believe Government ones, they came to the con- 
clusion that my complaint was real and that I should be oper- 
ated upon. Well, I suppose I will and I know that I have 
other troubles besides the one discovered by them, which were 
aggravated by their inhuman treatment, lack of medical atten- 
tion, denial of proper food and fresh air, etc. It really seems 
to me they want to finish me, and it seems strange too that 
they should act that way towards one who always stood up for 

224 




John Gill, Imprisoned in the Tombs in Connection with Case 
Because He Refused to Be Coerced. 



Trial Again Delayed 225 

American interests and America first. They will not let you 
have a letter from me unless it's mutilated and always delayed 
at least ten days and sometimes they won't let you have them 
anyway. 

Now that Johnny has joined the regular army, after being 
in the government service so long, too, I thought he might 
stay at home till I got out of jail anyhow. I wish the poor boy 
good luck, and although not 19 years of age, he will, I am sure, 
be an honor to his name and his race, as well as his country. 

I suppose little Frank who had to leave school in order to 
help provide for you and the little ones, will have a hard time 
working in that hot power house, and he is not over-strong 
either, but I'm sure the men will be kind to him. Just think 
how I feel about you and all the children, and especially Tom 
in France in the thickest of the fight, and his father in jail and 
not hearing from him nor he from me. 

Just think, our two boys in the service of the United States 
and their father in jail without a charge against him, and you 
and my children denied the provision that a father could 
make for his children. Once more, imagine the officials repre- 
senting our government doing the things that any husband or 
father would be put in State's prison for the crime of non-sup- 
port. I'm sure if it were known the American people would 
not stand for that crime committed in their name. Now, 
if by any chance I will not come out of the operation O. K., 
don't forget to have an investigation of the whole affair and 
also an autopsy, because I would not trust people that would 
starve my children and you, deny me bail, proper medical 
attention and food, and deprive me of every constitutional 
right that every citizen is entitled to have, and especially so 
when you are not feeling well. My attack in Ludlow Street 
Jail on that Sunday evening was, to say the least, suspicious. 
May God protect you, Kathleen, Peggy, Laurence, Frank and 
Nell! I hope she and Steve will have good luck and that 
he will advance in the navy and be a good husband to my Nell. 
Johnny looks well in his uniform and is every inch a soldier. 



226 My Political Trial and Experiences 

I hope some day, if it is necessary, he will be as willing to 
fight for poor Ireland. 

Just think, I volunteered twice but was not accepted and 
still they will not give me my liberty. They say I have some 
valuable information in the O'Leary case. Now, if I am to die, 
I still say that anything I ever knew about Mr. O'Leary was 
nothing but things that any honorable man would be proud 
of, and, as far as his Americanism is concerned, in my opinion, 
there are none better. About Mr, Robinson, I must say the 
same thing, although I know him only a short time. Come 
down as soon as you are able, I'm here among people with 
the most horrible diseases. I hope I may soon be out of here. 

I hope those hell hounds from the "Department of Injustice" 
will not annoy you much longer. Instead of fighting men in 
France, they are persecuting women and children here at 
home, safe from danger. But there is a just God in Heaven 
and he will regulate things as only He can. 

Keep up your spirits and pray for the return of Tommy and 
Johnny safe and sound, and above all pray for the return of 
sanity in our country, as far as the persecuting Government 
officers are concerned. 

With regards to my friends and love to you and the chil- 
dren, I am. 

Your fond husband 
John. 

P. S. I saw Matt McConnville who told me that the labor 
men would get a petition up for my release. I emphatically 
said "No." I want no favors, I only want Justice, and if I 
can't get that now I will suffer till I do. J. G, 

I am also handed a letter from Willard Robinson, which 
I record here with a feeling of interest and satisfaction. Robin- 
son has been a very much misunderstood and maligned young 
man. He has been set upon by the press because of his intense 
interest in Ireland's freedom. A lover of human liberty, young 
and eloquent, quiet and unobtrusive but withal a born fighter, 
he has become an enemy of the powers which seek to destroy 
me. I have heard rumors that he is going to be indicted for 




Willard J. Robinson, Tried and Acquitted 

for Treason. Imprisoned for One Year 

Upon a Groundless Charge. 



Trial Again Delayed 227 

treason and placed on trial for his life. Many friends on the 
outside have written to me and asked me for information con- 
cerning him. So I sent him a note asking him for a biograph- 
ical sketch, with the object of securing its publication. As a 
result he sent me, on January 16th a note with some particulars 
about himself, which I here record: 

January 16, 1919. 
Dear Mr. O'Leary: 

I have your note requesting a biographical sketch of my 
life. Below, I have done my best to comply as briefly as 
possible : 

I was born at Minot, South Dakota, of Irish Protestant 
stock. My paternal grandfather, Benjamin Robinson, was 
a member of the Young Ireland Party under the leadership of 
John Mitchel in 1847, and took part in the uprising under 
William Smith O'Brien in 1848. Benjamin Robinson emi- 
grated to America because, to use his own words, "I was 
too Irish to suit the British Government and the British Gov- 
ernment in Ireland was too English to suit me." My mother 
was a McCook, of the family of the famous "Fighting Mc- 
Cooks." My paternal granduncle, William E. Robinson, served 
in the American Congress with Abraham Lincoln, and was one 
of the men who was instrumental in causing Great Britain to 
relinquish its proud boast of those days, "Once a British sub- 
ject, always a British subject." My father held the position 
of Postmaster in Minot, and was at one time Democratic candi- 
date for the office of State Senator in South Dakota. He 
was defeated by a slight majority in what was at that period 
a normally overwhelming Republican state. While still a boy, 
I came East and lived in Summit, N. J. I graduated from 
the Summit High School at the age of 15 and worked two 
years in the printing office of the "Summit Herald," where I 
saved sufficient money to take a course in stenography and 
bookkeeping in a Newark business college. I held several 
positions in New York and vicinity and finally became a 
full-edged court reporter. At the outbreak of the European 
War I was connected with Merrill A. Teague, Publicity Mana- 



228 My Political Trial and Experiences 

ger for Charles A. Stoneham & Co., curb brokers, in the capa- 
city of Secretary and Assistant Publicity Manager. Shortly 
after the great European conflagration broke out, Mr. Teague 
died, and I severed my connection with Charles A. Stoneham 
& Co., and took up law reporting in New York. 

I knew my family history and was proud of my Irish heri- 
tage, regardless of the fact that I was not a Catholic. During 
my early youth I became fond of Irish history and took a 
strong interest in Irish affairs. One St. Patrick's Day, at the 
age of 12, I walked twenty miles from the suburbs of Summit, 
N. J., to New York, to see a great Irish parade. With 25 cents 
in my pocket I bought doughnuts and coffee, slept that night 
in a Jersey City ferry house, walked back home the following 
day, and got walloped by grandmother for my trip. Soon 
afterward the proverbial fatted calf was killed in honor of the 
prodigal. When the Easter Week Uprising of 1916 took place 
in Ireland, like most young Irish Americans I felt the inspira- 
tion. I was shocked at the utter brutality of the British in 
executing the leaders of the Rebellion, after they had laid down 
their arms on condition that they should be treated as prisoners 
of war. I learned that two second cousins of mine had taken 
part in the Uprising, and this increased my ardor. At that 
time I wrote this poem, "The Soul of Ireland," which I quote 
with pride and pleasure from my prison cell : 

The cynics and scoffers and slaves had said 
That the soul of the Emerald Isle was dead ; 
That the land of Emmet and Tone and O'Neil 
Would ring no more with the clash of steel. 
And they boasted too, with ghoulish glee 
That Ireland never should be free; 
That an Irish nation was but a dream. 
And interfered with the "Empire scheme." 
So they hurled their curses at Erin's sons, 
Who seized the swords and manned the guns, 
To fight for the soul of the Motherland, 
Such "Treason" they could not understand. 



Trial Again Delayed 229 

No Irish tongue need fear to speak 

Of how they fought that Easter Week, 

That faithful, staunch, heroic few; 

To give their lives was all they knew ; 

'Twas all that Irish hearts could do. 

No Irish cheek need blush to tell, 

How Patrick Pearse and others fell ; 

How sixteen Robert Emmets died, 

For love of Ireland crucified, 

By love of Ireland sanctified ; 

Or how brave Casement laid his head 

At rest with Ireland's martyred dead. 
"They died for what ?," the timid ask, 
"Why make such sacrifice?" 

And from their graves the answer comes, 
"We have but paid the price. 

We died for the Soul of Ireland, 

That Erin might awake ; 

And from her bruised and battered limbs 

The despot's shackles shake." 

Ah, England ! From your tyrant's throne. 

Well may you quake with fear. 

As o'er the grave of Patrick Pearse 

Rings out the Irish cheer. 

What matters it to Ireland now, 

How little England gives? 

She may murder Ireland's hero sons 

But, the Soul of Ireland lives. 
The Irish revolt made me and many others in America active 
sympathizers with its purposes. Shortly after the Rebellion 
and the executions, several of my friends decided to hold a 
street meeting at 37th Street and Broadway, to protest against 
the lawlessness and brutality of the British Government, in 
executing the bravest and most intellectual of Ireland's man- 
hood, and in sentencing hundreds of others to long terms of 
imprisonment. I made my first speech one evening in May, 
1916. I felt encouraged and made several others. An organi- 



230 My Political Trial and Experiences 

zation was at once formed, called the "1776 Association," and 
I was chosen its first President. The aim of this organization 
was to propagate the principles of Jeffersonian Americanism 
and the cause of Irish Freedom on the street corners, it being 
my idea that the general American public could be reached 
more effectively by such a method, than in a closed hall. 
Meetings were held, principally at 37th Street and Broadway, 
but they were not confined to that locality. Speakers were 
sent to all parts of New York City. I wanted the Associa- 
tion to grow until the entire country was covered by vigorous 
outdoor speakers, who would fight for the preservation of 
American liberty and its handmaid, the freedom of Ireland. 
I realized that the press of the country was largely subsidized, 
and believed that the "Soap-box," as the street platform was 
afterwards called, was the only remedy to combat the evil in- 
fluences which were seeking to destroy America's soul and to 
bring this nation back under the domination of Great Britain. 
The "1776 Association" wielded a tremendous influence in 
New York City, until after war was declared, when it ceased 
to exist under its old name, and became "The 1776 Branch of 
the Friends of Irish Freedom" under the leadership of Stephen 
W, Johnson. 

I would prefer not to discuss my present predicament at this 
time, my lawyer having advised me not to do so with anyone. 
Suffice to say that the Government must put me on trial sooner 
or later, and at that time I'll take the stand and easily disprove 
all the outrageously false charges against me. I dififered from 
you in the Mayoralty campaign of 1917. I supported Hill- 
quit while you gave the support of your large following to 
Hylan, thus undoubtedly insuring his election. I took my 
stand as a matter of principle. As far as the City of New 
York was concerned, Mr. Hillquit was the only man who rep- 
resented the principles in which I believed. He stood for free 
speech, a free press and freedom of Ireland. On these issues, 
Mr. Hylan was silent. I am not a Socialist, yet at that time I 
believed that the best way of rebuking the Powers that were 
seeking to destroy the spirit of true Americanism was by elect- 



Trial Again Delayed 231 

ing a Socialist Mayor of New York. I thought a large 
Socialist vote might have the effect of compelling the other 
two parties to adhere to the ideals upon which this great Re- 
public was founded. I therefore campaigned for Hillquit at 
both outdoor and indoor meetings. 

I wish you would convey my appreciation to the different 
Irish organizations and individuals who are taking an interest 
in my case. Although nearly all of my mail is being held 
up and even returned to senders, I have never doubted for a 
moment that the people on the outside who knew me have re- 
mained true. God bless them all ! They do not care whether 
or not I'm a "far-down." They're with me anyhow. That 
is the spirit that has won in Ireland and that is the spirit which 
will win here in America. If, by any chance, you run across 
Gill, give him my regards. Gill is a real man. The only 
chance I will have to see you will be on Sunday mornings as 
I go to Church. How are you feeling after your long siege 
at Bellevue? You'll beat them sure when you go to trial on 
the 27th. Think of victory all the time and victory will be 
yours. Good-bye, good luck and God bless you. 
Yours for the cause. 

Willard J. Robinson." 

January 20th. The afternoon papers say that Willard Rob- 
inson has been indicted for treason. Fine propaganda ! Robin- 
son has been in the Tombs since June 7, 1918. It is now Janu- 
ary 20, 1919, and it's only now that he has been indicted for 
treason. Surely, something is strange about this. I under- 
stand its purpose as I read the lurid headlines : "Treason by 
One O'Leary Worker, Says Indictment." Isn't it strange 
that Robinson should be indicted, and yet the only name in the 
big, black headline should be mine ? The public must be fooled ! 
The purpose of this indictment is to refill the public mind with 
prejudice against me on the eve of my trial. Such are the 
methods of the Department of Justice, but I here resolve to 
frustrate their plans. I'll use this propaganda against the 
contemptible propagandists. Wait and see. 

I have just read from the New York "World" a statement 



232 My Political Trial and Experiences 

read into court record by Willard J. Robinson, upon his ar- 
raignment on the charge of Treason. It follows : 

"This treason indictment against me is the most hideous 
travesty on justice that ever blotched the history of American 
jurisprudence. It is a diabolical species of political propaganda 
and official blackmail. Aimed ostensibly at me, it is in reality 
directed against the Irish Republican Movement, which I have 
never failed to champion, and which today challenges the at- 
tention of the entire civilized world — It is also filed at this par- 
ticular time to prejudice the public mind against Jeremiah 
O'Leary, on trial in another branch of this court. 

"Because I refused to bend the knee to wrong, however in- 
trenched behind hypocrisy or buttressed by the gold of an alien 
empire, the word has gone forth to destroy me, unless I lend 
my aid in destroying others, who are even more obnoxious to 
the powers that be, than myself, and the threat of death and 
dishonor is held over my head, to compel me to reveal some- 
thing which does not exist, and which the Department of Jus- 
tice knows does not exist. But the breed from which I spring 
produces neither traitors nor cowards. I have just begun to 
fight. 

"After eight months spent in jail, waiting for and in prepara- 
tion of trial on another indictment, this new tissue of lies and 
distortions is presented against me. The first indictment states 
that I met Victorica on July 15th. The present one fixes the 
date as of July 7th. Some one has lied. Morphine is a won- 
derful aid to the imagination and drug addicts are the neces- 
sary concomitants of the epidemic of indicteritis so prevalent 
in the Department of Justice at the present time, I plead Not 
Guilty." 

Let us wait and see which shall prove true — the govern- 
ment's indictment or Robinson's frank and manly statement. 

January 21st. Another treason indictment, this time against 
John T. Ryan. Again the purpose of this indictment is mani- 
fested by the lurid headline which appears in the New York 
Journal: "Ryan Indicted as O'Leary Plot Aide!" The 
"O'Leary Plot Aide!" What O'Leary. plot? Where has an 



Trial Again Delayed 233 

O'Leary plot been proven? And by whom? Here is another 
instance of propaganda by indictment. The Government must 
be desperate since it is using such unjust methods. Is this the 
reason why it adjourned my case from January 13th to January 
27th? I shall see it all through. If they can't win without 
poisoning the public mind against me, their case is weak indeed. 

January 22nd to January 27th. My last few days are spent 
awaiting the opening of my trial. I've been down to the Post 
Office Building conferring with my lawyers during the week. 
My brother, Arthur, just released from the Army, has volun- 
teered to defend me. I am happy over this ; my confidence is 
immeasurably increased. Arthur will represent the American 
Truth Society. Col. Felder will represent me personally, John, 
my brother, will assist them both. William J. Daly will rep- 
resent Adolph Stern. The indictment against Luther Bedford 
has been severed from mine. He is now out of it. The de- 
fendants, besides myself, are: Adolph Stern, a clerk. Bull 
Publishing Company and The American Truth Society. 

January 27th. After being in the Tombs eight long months, 
my trial begins. I am taken to court by Deputy Marshals 
Bowler and McQuade, who will have charge of me until the 
end. I have been assigned to Room 319, which will be my 
headquarters during the trial. I receive the good wishes of all 
at the Tombs, prisoners and officials, as handcuffed to the 
minions of the law, I leave and am whisked away in an auto- 
mobile furnished by a kindly friend. I am to have this auto- 
mobile until the trial is over. This brings my diary to a close. 
Another insidious peril now confronts me, but 
"Out of the night that covers me, 
Black as the pit from pole to pole, 
I thank whatever gods may be 
For my unconquerable soul." 



PART III 

My Political Trial 



BY 



Jeremiah A. O'Leary 

The Story of the Trial 

IN THE 

Federal Court in New York City 

Adapted from the 

Official Record of Testimony 



ON TRIAL AT LAST. 

The Constitution of the United States guarantees to every 
American citizen right of privacy against unlawful seizures 
and search. Every public official is sworn to uphold, protect, 
and defend the Constitution. On May 26th while on my 
ranch at Sara, two agents of the Department of Justice, at the 
instigation of Earl B. Barnes, an Assistant United States At- 
torney, in turn acting under the authority of James C. Caffey, 
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New 
York, who represented Attorney-General Thomas W. 
Gregory of President Woodrow Wilson's cabinet, entered my 
law office at 21 Park Row, New York, and in violation of 
my constitutional rights and of their respective oaths of office, 
for two weeks rummaged all my private papers, clients' papers, 
safe, drawers, files, bank books, check books; in fact, every- 
thing, and carted away with them whatever suited their fancy. 
Upon the filing of my petition and affidavits, and after a very 
warm and interesting discussion. Judge A. N. Hand issued 
an order directing the United States Attorney to return all my 
papers, files, check books, bank books, diaries, and whatever 
papers had been unlawfully seized, except a few letters which 
had been marked in evidence at my brother's trial. This order 
was a tremendous blow to the prosecution. At the very outset, 
it convicted them of wrongdoing and violation of the American 
Constitution, during a war for liberty "to make the world safe 
for democracy." 

The officials of the Department of Justice only partly obeyed 
the Court's order. Whatever their purpose, whether inten- 
tionally or unintentionally, they did not return all my papers 
promptly, but retained many valuable documents needed for 
my defense. Several times during the trial, I rose and de- 
manded them, and as a result, some of my checks were returned, 

237 



238 My Political Trial and Experiences 

but the stub-books were not, nor were my diaries. The im- 
portance of these papers lay in the fact that my diaries con- 
tained entries detailing every deposit I had made in my bank 
for four years. They answered the false charge of "German 
money." By retaining and destroying them the government 
officials thought they had tied my hands and made it im- 
possible for me to disprove a malicious but oft-repeated 
assertion involving the handling of German gold. 

I demanded that the court punish those who failed to 
comply with the order of the court to return these invaluable 
documents. I proved by the evidence of three witnesses that 
Dr. Frederick Bischof, the American Protective League "de- 
tective" — had actually physically removed them. Dr. Bischof 
was in Court but never took the stand to deny the accusation 
and even to-day some of my seized papers have not been re- 
turned. The Constitution was not only violated, but some- 
body in the Department of Justice actually disobeyed the 
order of Judge Hand, and stands unpunished for the con- 
tempt committed. Whether or not this is American Justice, 
I leave to the true Americans who believe in human right and 
human liberties to judge. 

My trial began in the Federal Court in the old Post-Office 
Building at Park Row and Broadway, New York City, on 
Monday, January 27, 1919. The charge against me was, as 
already stated, based upon the Espionage Act. Judge Augustus 
N. Hand presided. At the opening, Thomas B. Felder, my 
counsel, made a motion to quash the indictment, upon the 
ground that no violation of the law was stated, and that the 
case did not properly come under the Espionage Act. Mr. 
Felder made a powerful argument to support his motion, and 
was ably seconded by my brother Arthur, who had only 
lately been honorably discharged from the aviation service in 
which, as officer, he had served his country during the war. 
Argument on this motion took up the whole of the first day. 
Decision was rendered by Judge Hand on Tuesday on motion of 
the prosecution — that three counts in the indictment be dis- 
missed. He overruled the motion as to the remaining five 




Col. Thomas B. Felder. 



On Trial at Last 239 

counts. I had to stand trial on five counts carrying total penal- 
ties of one hundred years imprisonment and fifty thousand 
dollars in fines. 

Mr. Felder thereupon made a second motion to quash the 
indictment on the ground that when it was found, certain 
persons were in the Grand Jury room who had no legal right 
to be there. These included the Government prosecutor, James 
W. Osborne, a Secret Service man named Kemp, and at 
least five others. A fine scandal forsooth! Judge Hand 
overruled this motion also and Mr. Felder noted an exception. 
The remainder of Tuesday and all of the following two days, 
Wednesday and Thursday, were spent in selecting the jury. 

Out of a panel of about one hundred and fifty men, at 
least four-fifths were of English birth or extraction. Only 
eleven were of Irish descent, about five of German ante- 
cedents. An extraordinary panel, drawn in a city where at 
least two-thirds of the population are of Irish and German 
blood. This could not be a mere accident. It was planned. This 
could not give me a jury of my peers — a real representative 
American jury. A conviction by a jury selected from such a 
panel could not create confidence in American justice. I de- 
sired that my counsel object to this obvious discrimination 
against men of German and Irish ancestry. I could see no 
good reason why I should be tried by Americans of British ex- 
traction, who naturally would be prejudiced against me because 
of my strictures on British imperialism. I should have a jury 
of my peers, and that meant a representative panel. Obviously, 
the panel was packed, but, my lawyers said : "an acquittal by a 
prejudiced jury will be a greater victory," so under strong 
urging I gave way, and the examination proceeded. 

The questioning was careful and painstaking. Finally on 
Thursday evening, just before the adjournment of Court, 
twelve men were seated in the box, each of whom, with one 
possible exception, — Ernest R. Hunter, a Wall Street broker — 
was acceptable to my counsel, as well as to the Government's 
attorney. Hunter, was the only financier in the box. By con- 
sent of my counsel, and against my private protests, Hunter 



240 My Political Trial and Experiences 

was chosen as foreman by the Court. My counsel over-ruled 
me again and reluctantly I submitted. This man had ad- 
mitted prejudice, had promised to submerge it, and do justice. 
During the jury's deliberations his prejudice was rampant 
and caused a disagreement on the final count. I am reliably 
informed by one of the jurors that Hunter stated he would 
rather believe a prostitute than a priest. 

On Friday, January 31, the trial actually began, with the 
following twelve men in the jury box: Foreman, Ernest R. 
Hunter, broker, 34 Pine St., Manhattan; No. 2, James W. 
Harte, cashier, 416 East 142nd St., Manhattan; No. 3, Albert 
Plumacher, plater, 344 East 59th St., Manhattan; No. 4, 
James S. Kirk, electrician, 101 West 91st St., Manhattan; No. 
5, Bertie J. Kelsig, clerk, 922 Morris Ave., Bronx; No. 6, 
Frank H. Janke, vice-president, Suffern, N. Y. ; No. 7, James 
C. Hull, private secretary, 110 West 40th St., Manhattan; 
No. 8, John J. Hammond, pilot, 72 East 190th St., Bronx; No. 
9, William L. Gallin, contractor, 264 East 199th St., Bronx; 
No. 10, George C. Hall, merchant, 110 Riverside Drive, Man- 
hattan; No. 11, Isidor Scherick, merchant, 243 East 86th St., 
Manhattan ; No. 12, Silas J. Cabot, merchant, 210 West 43rd 
St. Manhattan. 

During a period of two weeks prior to my trial, the Govern- 
ment caused to be filed four indictments against Willard J. 
Robinson, John T. Ryan, Emil Fricke, and Herman Wessels, 
charging treason. Robinson was said to be my "stenographer," 
my "private secretary," my "confidential man," and my "general 
factotum," all falsehoods. One newspaper called him my 
"lobby-gow," whatever that means. Ryan was referred to as 
my lawyer, another falsehood. The information upon which 
these statements was based was furnished to the newspaper 
men by George Winship Taylor, an Assistant United States 
Attorney, in charge of the cases. The purpose of filing the in- 
dictments then was obviously to prejudice my case, as my panel 
had already been notified to appear, and anything said about 
me in the press would naturally be read with avidity by tales- 
men who had been selected to try me. I mention this extraor- 



On Trial at Last 241 

dinary fact as a matter of extreme importance, in order to 
show what poor judgment was exercised by the Government. 
The plan of those who did it was to obtain a conviction upon 
prejudice, if possible, instead of facts, but the actual effect 
was to overcharge the minds of the talesmen with prejudice 
against me. Practically every one rejected was asked if he had 
read the articles and answered, "Yes." He was next asked 
if they had created any impression on his mind. He had to 
answer in the affirmative. Then he was asked whether the 
impression was favorable or unfavorable. He necessarily an- 
swered, "unfavorable." The next question was: "Has that 
unfavorable impression left any prejudice in your mind?" The 
answer was invariably, "Yes." A few more skilful questions 
established the fact that the talesman could not give me a fair 
trial, as a result of which he was "challenged for cause," the 
court was compelled to sustain the challenge, and the Govern- 
ment lost a juror it had taken great pains, first to select and 
then to educate. 

It must be quite clear to any fair-minded American that 
such methods are reprehensible, to say the least ; yet in my case 
they defeated the very objects of those who used them. It 
should be said to the credit of the talesmen, who admitted their 
prejudices, that they fulfilled the highest duty of citizenship, 
they proved themselves far better Americans than those who 
sought to use them to corrupt American justice. Several times 
I sought to induce my counsel to make a protest against what 
was clearly an effort to prevent my getting a fair trial, but 
they overruled me and decided to wade through the large 
list in the hope that the constant rejection of talesmen for 
prejudice would induce the jurors finally selected to take 
good care that I should receive a fair trial. In this, the 
outcome of the trial proved their judgment to be sound, be- 
cause the men who were finally selected — with one exception — 
did give me a fair trial, and vindicated the finest traditions 
of American justice. Both Robinson and Fricke were later 
acquitted of the charge of treason upon their respective trials. 
In Robinson's case Judge Learned Hand, an able and distin- 



242 My Political Trial and Experiences 

guished jurist, ruled that Robinson did not even have to 
answer the charge of treason against him and directed a ver- 
dict of acquittal when the Government's case was finished. 

A feature of the selection of jurors in my trial was the 
impartiality of Judge Augustus N. Hand's rulings. He re- 
peatedly cautioned the talesmen to lay aside their prejudices, 
and stated that the defendants were entitled to a fair trial, 
and that if they had not intended to obstruct the draft and 
violate the law they had a right to be anti-British or pro- 
Irish, whichever the case might be. The court room was 
well filled, chiefly with spectators and friends when James 
W. Osborne, Jr., began his opening on Friday morning, 
January 31. The press table was occupied with representatives 
of every daily paper in New York and of news agencies. Mr. 
Osborne charged that my anti-British activities began at the 
Carnegie Hall Peace Meeting of 1912, and had continued 
without interruption since that time; that I had organized 
the American Truth Society before the publication of "Bull," 
made speeches, and written books and pamphlets, designed 
to belittle and attack England, "one of our Allies" ; that I had 
dragged up "ancient history," the Revolution, the War of 
1812, the Civil War, Jefferson's writings, Washington's poli- 
cies, and other American traditions filled with hatred of 
Great Britain, as a means of inducing those in America 
who hated England to refuse to enlist, to refuse military 
duty, and to create mutiny in the Army and Navy; that I 
had tried to organize German-Americans and Irish-Americans, 
and that I wanted to see England crushed. Mr. Osborne 
further declared that I had used German-Americans to aid 
my plans, all of which were in violation of the Espionage Law. 

Mr. Osborne's first witness on January 31 was John J. 
Ruth, President of Bull Publishing Company. Ruth testified 
that he was a Trustee of the American Truth Society and 
President of the Bull Publishing Company, which published 
"Bull." By him the Government showed how "Bull" was 
started and how it was owned and controlled, that is to say. 



On Trial at Last 243 

that fifty-one pef cent of the stock of Bull Publishing Com- 
pany was owned by the American Truth Society. 

Cross-examined, Mr. Ruth threw the first of several bomb- 
shells that were to fall into the camp of the prosecution. He 
declared that after a conversation with me he had volun- 
teered in the American Navy, and that after meeting and 
knowing me he had "become a better American," and "a 
more devoted and loyal American." The prosecution was 
visibly disturbed and objected to this reply, but Judge Hand 
ruled that the answer must stand. The courtroom laughed 
at the prosecution's discomfiture. This testimony did not 
look as if I was creating mutiny or resisting the draft — the 
President of "Bull" volunteering to fight Germany. 

Miss Bertha Zwillinger, a stenographer of the Bull Pub- 
lishing Company, was next called by the Government. She 
wore a button with three stars and testified in detail about 
the office aflfairs of "Bull," relating on cross-examination how, 
after a stormy quarrel, I had practically discharged Luther 
Bedford, editor of "Bull," for attacking the draft and calling 
American soldiers "slaves," and how I had advised every man 
who came into the office "to register and to comply with the 
law." Miss Zwillinger also swore that she had a brother and two 
nephews in the Army. Her testimony was another boomerang 
to the prosecution, which had called her. Again the Govern- 
ment objected, but again it was overrruled. The objection 
of the prosecution proved it was avoiding the issue. This 
was another boomerang. There wasn't much mutiny in evi- 
dence yet. 

Mr. Osborne next introduced "Bull" into evidence. After 
handing each juror a copy of the August number, he began 
to read and to describe the cartoons. He said to the jury, 
"we shall read every number from cover to cover." The jury- 
men grasped their "Bulls" eagerly and, instead of regarding 
the magazine seriously and as evidence of a great crime, at 
least ten laughed outright as they turned over page after 
page, the Judge, who held copies in his hands, joining with 
the jury at some of the funny cartoons, poems, jokes and 



244 My Political Trial and Experiences 

jabs. This was another very serious boomerang for the 
prosecution. A magazine supposed to create mutiny had 
made the jury laugh. It at once became plain that the reading 
of "Bull" had just the opposite effect from that intended 
by the prosecution, and that it was by no means a publica- 
tion that could create mutiny. A magazine which could 
make a jury laugh could never create mutiny. A htunorous 
incident during the reading of "Bull" was Mr. Osborne's 
reading of an ironical attack on H. Snowden Marshall, who 
was assisting the prosecution. The reference was very funny 
and the courtroom laughed, while Mr. Marshall remained 
quite solemn and serious, blushing deeply; the jury look- 
ing over the tops of their "Bulls" at Mr. Marshall and laugh- 
ing at his discomfiture. It was now evident that "Bull" had 
fallen flat. If the Government was to convict, it must be 
upon some other evidence. Surely, no jury who laughed at a 
magazine would ever send to jail for life the man who wrote 
it. Apparently we now have the reason why Victorica, Gon- 
zales, Pettit and Martin, the most disgraceful quartet that 
ever ascended a witness stand, were brought into the case. 
This ended the first week of the trial. 



n 

TABLES TURNED ON PROSECUTION. 

The trial was resumed on Monday, February 3, the entire 
day being consumed in the reading of the September nimiber 
of "Bull." On Tuesday, the October number of "Bull" and 
other writings of mine were introduced in evidence. The 
effect of the reading of "Bull" on the jury had not escaped 
the prosecution, because on Monday Mr. Osborne wanted to 
dispense with it, notwithstanding the fact that he had stated, 
"I shall read every copy of this magazine, from cover to 
cover." My lawyers objected and a colloquy followed which 
resulted in an agreement whereby the Government could 
read what it desired, while the defense could interpolate what 
it wanted. On Wednesday, the prosecution called Arthur 
Wiener, an artist and head of a commercial art concern, to 
the witness stand. He testified that he had introduced me 
to Dr. Heinrich Albert, "Financial Attache of the German 
Embassy either in July or in August, 1915," and that he had 
sent anon)rmously, and without my knowledge, to the Amer- 
ican Truth Society, at various times, contributions amount- 
ing in all to the sum of $5,000. He stated that he sent this 
money in cash to the Commonwealth Trust Company, West 
Hoboken, N. J., the Treasurer of the Society, and to the 
Society headquarters at 210 Fifth Avenue, in a series of 
small amounts. Wiener also swore that he did this because 
he did not desire to let me, or the American Truth Society, 
know the source of the contributions. 

The witness admitted that he knew the Society was limited 
to American citizens, which was another reason why he con- 
cealed the source of the funds. He further testified that the 
money came through Dr. Albert, that it was not the German 
Government's money, but had been collected by Dr. Albert 
from wealthy German-Americans, who had used him as the 

245 



246 My Political Trial and Experiences 

intermediary for their contributions. Not one jot or tittle of 
written evidence was introduced to corroborate Wiener's evi- 
dence. The Department of Justice had had the cash receipt 
books of the American Truth Society since November, 1917, 
when I had voluntarily appeared before the Grand Jury and 
had presented the books to that body. The books were kept 
by the Government. They showed the receipt of all cash 
contributions, in fact, every penny ever received by the Society. 
The Society had kept a strict and accurate account of the 
names and addresses of all donors and of all funds. The 
books showed that it had collected and spent upwards of 
$70,000. There was nothing to prevent the Government or 
anybody else from taking these books, studying them and 
then concocting a story around some of the entries. It was 
to be expected that an organization like the American Truth 
Society would receive anonymous cash contributions. There 
are a great many people in the world, particularly rich folks, 
who become interested in a cause and who, because of their 
connections, their business, or for some other reason, some- 
times just plain modesty, absolutely refuse to send their names 
along with contributions. The Society had been made a target 
by the newspapers. Such a fact would make many people 
anxious to aid it, timid about doing so, and therefore most 
likely to send their money in anonymously. Many educa- 
tional institutions, churches, hospitals — even political organi- 
zations, continually receive anonymous contributions. When 
so received, how can they be returned? To whom? If one 
doesn't know the donor, how can one return the gift? All 
through the books of the Society were entries such as this: 

"Date Name (Anonymous) Address 

Amount, $25.00." 

There was absolutely nothing to prevent any agent of the 
Department of Justice from picking out any anonymous con- 
tribution and, if able to secure some German agent to say 
he made it; from putting that German agent on the witness 
stand, and swearing that the contribution or contributions 
were his. I mention this, not as an absolute assertion that in 



Tables Turned on Prosecution 247 

this instance such a thing was done, but in view of what was 
done with regard to other witnesses, which we actually proved. 
I maintain that proof such as was adduced by way of witness 
Wiener was not convincing proof. It was wrong to admit it 
against me, because if I had no knowledge of a transaction, 
because if I had been deceived, I could have no intent con- 
cerning it. One of the first real sensations of the trial oc- 
curred in connection with this witness' testimony. Nine days 
before the trial began, Wiener had been interned, although 
the armistice had been long since signed, and he had there- 
tofore complied with all Government alien enemy regulations 
during the war. He had purchased Liberty Bonds and had 
paid one-half for all Liberty Bonds bought by his employees 
as an inducement to them to buy the bonds. He had been sent 
for twenty-five successive times by Earl B. Barnes, Assistant 
United States District Attorney, United States Attorneys 
George Winship Taylor and James W. Osborne, Jr., and by 
Dr. Frederick Bischoif, an American Protective League 
worker, who, for some reason or other, had made a specialty 
of hounding me. On each occasion he had been questioned 
about my knowing the source of the funds, but each time re- 
iterated the truth, insisting that I did not know the source. 
Finally, he was sent for by Perry Armstrong, of the Enemy 
Alien Bureau, was again questioned, and when he persisted 
that he could not tell a lie, he was abruptly sent to the Ellis 
Island internment camp. This was an attempt to compel 
Wiener to state something which was untrue, and to use the 
power of internment even after the armistice as a means of 
doing so. If Wiener were a weak man the way to freedom was 
open to him, but he could not state what he knew would be 
deliberate perjury, and although proprietor of a business that 
needed him, he was whisked off to Ellis Island, a prisoner of 
war. When I discovered this I was horrified and fully expected 
any kind of perjury to develop, if men were weak enough to be 
bulldozed into swearing falsely, wherever the Government had 
the opportunity and possessed the power to destroy voluntary 
action. 



248 My Political Trial and Experiences 

The jury was plainly shocked at this instance of despotic 
oppression by Government officials. These points were brought 
out on a cross-examination by me and my attorneys, the court 
having consented that I undertake the cross-examination. 
Wiener also testified that he had never told me that he was 
not an American citizen and that for all I knew he was one. 
This was quite plausible, a man in my position could easily 
be imposed upon by obtrusive adventurers who might try to use 
me for their own ends. Many points damaging to the prosecu- 
tion's contention were brought out in cross-examination, not- 
ably that at a dinner arranged by Wiener in March, 1915, 
I had addressed about fifteen of his friends at the Hofbrau 
Haus, New York, and had upbraided German-Americans be- 
cause they did not mix more with their fellow-American citi- 
zens, and did not devote themselves to real Americanism. I 
also secured from the witness the admission that about May 3d, 
1915, I had condemned the sinking of the Lusitania as an 
outrage, and had said that when the Germans destroyed 
American lives they had alienated the sympathies of millions 
of American citizens, driving them from a neutral position, 
which they had taken pursuant to the President's Proclama- 
tion, to the British side. I wrung from him the admission 
that I had suspended a forum of the American Truth Society, 
scheduled to discuss the Lusitania tragedy in order that nothing 
should be done to embarrass the diplomatic negotiations of the 
President, and that his urgings to hold it could not influence 
me. 

The next witness was Rudolph Croneau, an American, who 
testified that in 1914, without any solicitation on my part, he 
called at my office and suggested that I start a periodical to 
be called "The True American," and stated that he would go 
to Count Von Bemstorff and try and raise $15,000 for the 
periodical; that he went and "Count Von Bemstoff told the 
witness he was not interested in true Americanism." This 
was a blow to the prosecution's case, because it clearly estab- 
lished that Germany was not interested in my work, and that 
my activities were not pro-German, at least from the German 



Tables Turned on Prosecution 249 

standpoint. My defense was that I was fighting for the ideals 
of the Declaration of Independence, Washington's Farewell 
Address, Jefferson's political philosophy, and Lincoln's humane 
political theories. Croneau's testimony made this clear. On 
cross-examination, he admitted that I had told him, "I was 
not interested in Kings or Kaisers." At this point I interrupted, 
and (according to the newspapers) enlivened the trial by de- 
manding that the prosecution produce my check book and 
stubs, as well as my diary and certain letters which Judge 
Hand had ordered returned to me, and which the prosecution 
had failed to produce, in accordance with Judge Hand's pre- 
liminary order. I declared: 

"It is the duty of the Government to acquit as well as to 
convict, and if the District Attorney has any evidence which 
would tend to acquit the defendants, it is his duty to produce 
it. Almost two weeks ago the Court ordered the District 
Attorney to return to me the papers — all of them — that the 
Government wrongfully took from my office, in violation of 
my Constitutional rights. The District Attorney had not done 
so. The District Attorney has disobeyed the order of the 
Court, and therefore is in contempt. I demand that he be cited 
and punished for contempt. Far more important than the con- 
viction of Jeremiah O'Leary is the vindication of American 
justice." 

The Court, cognizant of the prosecution's failure to obey 
its mandate, said that the District Attorney must obey the 
orders of the Court, and adjourned Court, directing the Dis- 
trict Attorney to produce the remainder of my papers. Upon 
the restunption of the trial, the District Attorney produced my 
cancelled checks for four years back. On examining them, I 
found that the stub-books from March, 1916, to February, 
1917, were still missing. I demanded them, contending that 
they were necessary for my defense, and the Court again ad- 
monished the prosecution to produce the missing checks and 
check books. The trial was resumed only upon the District 
Attorney's promise to do so. Later in the day, I repeated my 
demand for the papers. The District Attorney sneered, "I'm 



250 My Political Trial and Experiences 

no messenger boy for you." To this I retorted, "No; but 
in this matter you are messenger boy for the Court, and in- 
stead of being an obstruction you should be an instrument of 
Justice." The Court again directed the prosecution to produce 
the papers, but on resuming, the prosecution declared that the 
papers could not be found. 

Mrs. Margaret Kelly, former stenographer for the American 
Truth Society, was the next witness called by the Govern- 
ment. She was called to testify about the workings of the 
American Truth Society's office. Her testimony resulted in 
another setback for the prosecution. She testified that I had 
advised every man who came into the office to "obey the law," 
and had declared to Irish-Americans repeatedly that "they 
were fighting not for England but for the United States." 
She went into detail about the sources of the Truth Society's 
income and showed by an analysis of all the books — all in 
her handwriting — that the name and address of each and 
every known donor was entered, together with the amount 
subscribed. Her testimony revealed that the American Truth 
Society was perhaps financially supported by more people 
than any other patriotic society in the United States ; that it had 
at least ten thousand individual subscribers and donors dur- 
ing its four years of operations, and that on several days its 
contributions ran well over $100 and one day over $3,000. 
She testified that the Society carried on its work by public 
contributions, and had collected and spent over $80,000. This 
testimony aided the defense, because it established that the 
source of the Society's funds was not German but the Amer- 
ican public. The witness declared that she never knew or 
heard of any of the Society's members or friends refusing mili- 
tary duty, pointing out that the first American aviator to die 
in France was Walter J, Boldt, son of Dr. Herman J. Boldt, 
one of the most active members of the Society, and one of the 
most faithful contributors and supporters. It was also shown 
by the witness that the Society was a broad one, including many 
of Irish, English and other foreign antecedents. Col. Louis D. 
Conley, of the Sixty-Ninth Regiment, was a member. So at 



Tables Turned on Prosecution 251 

one time was Major John Bigelow, son of John Bigelow, 
friend of Abraham Lincoln, while Reverends James W. Power, 
John H. Dooley, P. J. O'Donnell, and other prominent and 
respected clergymen were contributors and interested in its 
work, r asked her on cross-examination if she ever heard 
anyone accuse the former Colonel of the Sixty-Ninth of dis- 
loyalty and she replied, "Certainly not." I then inquired, 
"Isn't it a fact that these two books contain the names of some 
of America's most prominent business men and citizens, as 
well as of many men who have since fought and died for their 
country in this war?" The witness answered "Yes." This 
was a challenge the Government never answered and couldn't 
answer. It proved our members had done their war duty. 

H. Snowden Marshall, who assisted Mr. Osborne, Jr., in 
the prosecution, objected to this question on the ground that 
it was "taking up the time of the Court." To his objection 
I replied, "Yes ; your Honor, they want to send me to jail for 
one hundred years, and yet they don't want me to prove 
that I am innocent. Every time I prove something which hurts 
them and their case they object, because we are taking up 
the time of the Court." The courtroom laughed as Mr. Mar- 
shall resumed his seat, while Judge Hand overruled his objec- 
tion and instructed the witness to answer. Several times dur- 
ing the trial, and particularly when the defense scored heavily, 
Mr. Marshall expressed his concern about "the time of the 
Court," and phrased his solicitude in objections, but Judge 
Hand, who held the scales of Justice with even hand and an 
eye scrupulous to exact balance, overruled him, and properly 
so. On one of these occasions, my brother Arthur, jumped 
to his feet and indignantly protested at "the cheap, demagogic 
appeals Mr. Marshall is constantly making to the jurors." He 
asserted : 

"Your Honor, we resent the tactics of the prosecution. This 
is a court of Justice. It is the defendant's right to cross- 
examine and to prove by cross-examination the defendant's 
innocence. It isn't fair for Mr. Marshall to continually sug- 
gest that the defense in doing so is taking up the Court's time. 



252 My Political Trial and Experiences 

It is our right to take up the Court's time. We are not here 
through choice; we are here because the prosecution brought 
us here, we believe, and we shall prove, wrongly. Under these 
circumstances, I protest against the cheap, frivolous objections 
of Mr. Marshall, as calculated by him to prejudice the jury 
against the defense, and to create the erroneous impression that 
the defense is exceeding its rights." The Court overruled 
Mr. Marshall's objection, and directed the defense to pro- 
ceed. These objections were clearly an evidence of weakness. 
They registered the Government's lack of confidence in its 
own case, as well as its concern over the strength of our de- 
fense. 



ni 

ADOLPH S. OCHS ON THE GRILL. 

On Thursday afternoon, February 6th, an unusual and ex- 
traordinary incident occurred. Adolph S. Ochs, alleged owner 
of the majority stock of the New York Times Publishing 
Company, was called to the witness stand. Although absolutely 
unprepared with data to conduct a searching cross-examina- 
tion, I decided to cross-examine him, out of whatever recollec- 
tions my mind could afford. Here was a chance of a lifetime, 
to cross-examine a man who was willing to take the responsi- 
bility of the "New York Times" international policies. It 
must have been rather humiliating to Ochs to be cross-ex- 
amined by one who had been brought into Court from a prison 
cell handcuffed to a couple of marshals. I jumped at 
the opportunity and decided to make the best of it. I was not 
in good physical condition and my attorneys begged me to 
"let him go"; but I refused and entreated them to let me go 
ahead. They finally yielded. 

He had been called upon this theory : "Bull" had repeatedly 
alleged that the "New York Times" was an English newspaper, 
and was owned and controlled by Lord Northcliffe, or by 
British influences. The Government called Ochs to prove that 
he owned the majority stock in the corporation which owned the 
"Times." Ochs did not bring his certificates of stock into 
Court. He simply stated that he owned them. From this the 
Government argued that since Ochs owned the stock, the 
attacks of "Bull" on the "Times" being groundless, were in- 
sincere, and since the "Times" was a "good American news- 
paper," and "was supporting the war," the real object of 
"Bull's" attacks was not to expose the "Times" but to create 
a mutiny by attacking a newspaper which favored the war. 
This was rather far-fetched but Judge Hand permitted it. 
The cross-examination of Ochs was published in part at the 

253 



254 My Political Trial and Experiences 

time and was widely read. It derives its importance from the 
fact that it is an actual exhibition of the man who claims 
to own "one of the greatest newspapers in America, a power- 
ful organ of public opinion." The following report of the 
testimony given by Ochs is taken from the "Gaelic American" 
of February 15, 1919: 

"One of the most striking features of the trial of Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary was his cross-examination of Adolph S. Ochs, 
alleged owner of the New York "Times," on Thursday, Febru- 
ary 6. O'Leary who edited "Bull," a satirical monthly, which 
was suppressed by the Government, continually charged that 
the New York "Times" was controlled by Lord Northcliffe, 
or some British influences. The Government, in its indictment, 
charges that "Bull" violated the law because it attacked the 
New York "Times," "a patriotic American newspaper" ; and 
it called Ochs to the stand to refute O'Leary's charges and 
the attacks in "Bull." Mr. Ochs caused a sensation in the 
court room when, before Judge Hand and a jury, on Feb- 
ruary 6, he stepped to the stand. When O'Leary saw him. 
he turned to his counsel. Colonel Thomas B. Felder, and said : 

" 'This is the happiest day of my life. May I cross-examine 
that counterfeit American ?' 

"Colonel Felder replied in the affirmative, and after Ochs had 
denied that Northcliffe owned his newspaper, O'Leary jumped 
to his feet and began the most uncomfortable one hour Adolph 
S. Ochs ever spent in his life. He fiddled, evaded and made 
statements that were absolutely untrue, as his examination 
and a reference to the files of the "Times" will show. O'Leary 
was rpuch hindered by H. Snowden Marshall, who fre- 
quently rushed to Mr. Ochs' assistance, and by the Court, 
who tried to confine O'Leary's questions to the sole question 
of ownership. At one point when questioned about auto rid- 
ing with NorthcKffe, Ochs appeared to be about to deny it, 
but evidently fearing O'Leary had inside information, he was 
forced to admit the truth. At another point Ochs hesitated 
at least a minute, turned deadly pale and was unable to bring 
his lips together. He was plainly cornered and flabbergasted. 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 255 

He made a mighty poor showing, for the alleged owner of a 
great newspaper. A careful study of his examination by any 
reader of the "Times" makes it very damning. O'Leary 
touched on practically every subject where the "Times's" policy 
is known, and there isn't a man who knows the "Times" and 
who reads the examination who must not be forced to the con- 
clusion that the man who was questioned was, as O'Leary re- 
peatedly alleged in "Bull," not an (ox) Ochs, but an ass. 
Those who heard the examination and saw the witness were 
appalled at Ochs's evasiveness and palpable misstatements. His 
statement that the "Times" always upholds American interests 
characterizes his testimony that he owns the paper as wholly 
unreliable. Practically every man in the jury is a "Times" 
reader, but the jury plainly showed both its amusement and 
disgust with the owner of their favorite newspaper. Near 
the door of the court room were several other newspaper 
owners from various cities, who were heard talking among 
themselves. They expected to be called. One was heard to say : 
T wonder if that fellow O'Leary has our files; he seems to 
know all about the editorial policies of the newspapers.' 

"These other owners were not called because O'Leary's 
lawyer. Colonel Felder, entered a formal objection to the 
evidence and Judge Hand ruled any more of it out, and the 
alleged owners of the Detroit "Free Press," the Denver "Post," 
Springfield "Republican," and others smiled with relief as, 
behind the disconsolate and very much discredited and shaken 
Mr. Ochs, they wended their ways out of the court room." 

"Here follows the examination and cross-examination of Ochs 
by Jeremiah O'Leary in detail. It is worth preserving for 
future reference: 

"After a few preliminary questions, Mr. Osborne came to the 
ownership of the 'Times.' 

Q. Mr. Ochs, who owns the "Times" ? A. The New York 
Times Company. 

Q. And that is a corporation? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Are you the President of that Company? A. Yes, sir. 



256 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. How many shares of stock are there? A. Ten thousand 
shares. 

Q. How much of that stock do you own? A. About 54 
per cent of it. 

Q. And what is the par value of the stock, $100 per share? 
A, One hundred dollars a share. 

Q. A million-dollar corporation? A. A million-dollar cor- 
poration. 

Q. Mr. Ochs, does Lord Northcliffe own any interest in 
that paper? A. None whatsoever. 

Q. Has he ever owned any? A. No, sir. 

Q. Do you know whether the stock in that paper is owned 
by Americans or not? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Entirely? A. Entirely. 

Mr. Osborne — The witness is yours. 

Mr. O'Leary's cross-examination follows: 

Q. Mr. Ochs, are you in control of the editorial policy of 
the New York "Times"? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How often do you go to the New York "Times" office. 
A. Every day. 

Q. Have you been going there every day for the last five 
years ? A. I suppose I have not been there every day. 

Q. You read the editorials in your newspaper ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did your newspaper ever favor Free Tolls for the Panama 
Canal? 

Mr. Osborne — I object to that. 

Mr. O'Leary — They are trying to show this newspaper is 
not controlled by British influences. I am going to conduct a 
cross-examination to show that it is. 

Mr. Osborne — I object to that question. 

Mr. O'Leary — I am now going to the "Times" to prove it is 
controlled by British influences; that it has been working for 
England instead of the United States; that is my purpose. 

Mr. Osborne — I press the objection. 

Mr. O'Leary — I did not go into this, your Honor ; the prose- 
cution has. I ask your Honor in considering the question to 
bear that in mind. 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 257 

The Court — I do not see what any of it has to do with the 
case. 

Mr. Osborne — If your Honor will hear me? The Court — 
Yes. 

Mr. Osborne — ^We are proving an utter lack of good faith 
in the statements in the publication "Bull." Your Honor 
probably does not recall what they were. There is a statement — 

The Court — Just make the statement. 

Mr. Osborne — The statement in respect to the "Times" is 
that it is a paper advocating a strong military policy, vigorous 
prosecution of the war. The statement in full is that it is 
owned by British influences, and therefore that is the cause. 
The direct statement is that the "Times" is owned by Lord 
Northcliffe. 

The Court — That is the direct statement. Mr. Osborne — 
Yes, sir. 

Mr. O'Leary — No; the statements in "Bull" are to other 
effects. For instance, in the — 

The Court — Refer to that particular statement. 

Mr. O'Leary — Yes. Here is a statement from "Bull" of- 
ferred in evidence by the Government, in the March, 1916, 
number of "Bull." There is an editorial that is in evidence, 
and it reads as follows : 

(Mr. O'Leary read editorial from March, 1916, issue of 
"Bull" heretofore received in evidence.) 

Mr. O'Leary — Now, your Honor, all through this "Bull" 
there are quotations from the New York "Times" that "Bull" 
has attacked, in order to prove that in its policy the New York 
"Times" has been controlled by British considerations and 
not American considerations. 

Mr. Osborne brings Mr. Ochs here for the purpose of show- 
ing, with a few questions, that England or English interests, 
or English subjects, do not own the stock in the "Times" 
Publishing Company. 

He is going to argue, and he proposes to argue — and if 
your Honor does not permit me to go into these matters — 
he is going to argue, and we won't have any answers to his 



258 My Political Trial and Experiences 

arguments, if you keep out this evidence, that the New York 
"Times" is not controlled by British interests, and that, there- 
fore, the New York "Times," in saying these things that we 
charge it with in this magazine, acted out of American con- 
siderations. 

Under those circumstances, it becomes our right, and, in- 
deed, it becomes our duty to show, by editorials from the 
New York "Times," which this gentleman says he controls, 
that the New York "Times" has been working for the past 
fifteen years for British interests ; that it opposed the Panama 
Canal Free Tolls resolution of President Taf t ; that it opposed 
the fortification of the Panama Canal by the United States, 
although it was built by the United States Government and 
American money; that it opposed an American Merchant 
Marine; that it stood back of a lobby in Congress which was 
opposed to an American Merchant Marine; that it opposed 
the Ship Subsidy Bill ; that it continually attacked the German- 
Americans; that it continually attacked Irish- Americans ; that 
it caused racial differences between the American people, by 
setting one race in the city against another; that it carried 
on a subtle propaganda in favor of the British- American Union 
by furbishing up and putting in the headlines men like Car- 
negie and men who were openly known to favor such a propa- 
ganda, whilst, on the other hand, it attacked and vilified and 
lied about such organizations as the American Truth Society 
that was founded to promote Americanism, based upon the 
utterances of Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln, and the 
great American Institutions that were founded in 1776. 

The Court — Now, wait a minute. I won't hear any further 
argument. I will allow this question. Now put your question 
briefly. 

Mr. O'Leary — I will, your Honor. I withdraw the question, 
and put it again. 

Q. Mr. Ochs, you say that you control the editorial policy 
of the New York "Times" ; is that right? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you ever have a man named Cleveland working in 



Adolph S. Ochs on the GriU 259 

the editorial rooms of the New York "Times," an editorial 
writer? A. I think not; not that I recall. 

Q. Don't you know that you had a man up there named 
Qeveland, in the month of January, 1916? A. I do not. 

Q. Do you know who your employees are? A. Not all 
of them. 

Q. Well, did you know that an editorial was written in the 
New York "Times" on the 22d of January, 1916, entitled "The 
Truth at Last," in which it was stated that the men who 
murdered the German sailors of a submarine in the incident 
that was reported from abroad were not the British marines 
of the Baralong, but American sailors and American citizens 
of the steamer Nicosianf A. I do not. 

Q. Do you know who wrote that editorial? A. I do not. 

Q. Did you approve of that editorial? A. I do not recall it. 

Q. Do you deny that such an editorial was written in the 
New York "Times" ? A. I do not know that it appeared at all. 

Q. You never read it? A. Not that I recall. 

Q. Don't you read the editorials in your newspaper? A. Yes, 
but there are 365 issues a year, many pages, and I do not 
recall every part in them. 

Q. If you saw an editorial, and that editorial stated that 
an atrocity that was, in fact, committed by English marines, 
was committed by American citizens, wouldn't that interest 
you? A. It certainly would. 

Q. Would you resent the taking of the cloak of infamy 
from a foreign nation like England and putting it on the 
shoulders of your own country? Would you resent that? 

Mr. Marshall — ^We object to that. 

The Court — Objection sustained. 

Q. Did you resent it? 

Mr. Marshall — The same objection. 

The Court — Sustained. 

Mr. O'Leary — I will take an exception. Mr. Ochs, will you 
please do us the favor of bringing here the files of the New 



260 My Political Trial and Experiences 

York "Times" to cover the 22d of January, 1916? Can you 
do that ? A. I think it is possible, I am not sure. 

Q. You are not sure? A. No. 

Q. You have spare newspapers, have you not, for sale? A. 
Not of all issues. 

Q. Don't you knovvr you make a specialty of selling — 

The Court — Oh, I can not allovi^ this question, 

Q. Well, now, Mr. Ochs, when did you first start out in the 
newspaper business? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that. The Court — Sustained. 

Mr. O'Leary — I will take an exception. 

Q. Where is the stock of the New York "Times" at the 
present time — the shares, the specific shares? A. I suppose 
in the possession of the people who own them. 

Q. You say you own how many shares? A. More than the 
controlling interest. 

Q. More than 51 per cent? A. More than 51 per cent. 

Q. Do you know a man named Belmont? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you ever meet Lord Northcliffe? A. Frequently. 

Q. Were you present at a banquet in Philadelphia in 1899 
in the Hotel Walton when Lord Northcliffe made a speech? 
A. I was not. 

Q. Was Lord Northcliffe here in 1899? A. I do not know. 

Q. Did you own the Philadelphia "Ledger" in 1899? A. 
I think so. 

Q. And did you own the Chattanooga "Times"? A. Yes. 

Q. Was Lord Northcliffe in this country around the year 
1899? A. I do not know. 

Q. When did you obtain control of the Philadelphia 
"Ledger" ? A. I think about in 1901 ; I am not quite sure 
about the date. 

Q. In 1901 ? A. Or 1902. 

Q. Did you ever talk with Lord Northcliffe about the policy 
of your paper? A. Never in my life. 

Q. Do you mean to say you met the greatest newspaper man 
in England and you did not talk to him about the policy of 
your paper. 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 261 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that. That has nothing to do 
with this. 

The Court — Sustained. Mr. O'Leary — Exception. 

Q. You say you are familiar with the editorial policy of 
your paper, are you? A. I think so. 

Q. Did your paper favor the Free Tolls Resolution of 
President Taft on the Panama Canal? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that as immaterial and irrelevant. 

The Court — Overruled. 

A. I think so. I won't say positively. 

Q. Will you swear positively that your paper favored Presi- 
dent Taft's position on that question? A. The paper would 
show for itself. 

Q. Don't you know, Mr. Ochs, that the paper opposed 
President Taft's position on that question ? A. I do not recall 
now exactly. At the time, many things occurred. Whatever 
the paper published is a matter of record. 

Q. Do you remember the question of the fortification of the 
Canal? A. Yes, I do recall that. 

Q. Didn't your paper oppose that in its editorial policy? 
A. I think so. I am not sure. 

Q. England was also opposed to the fortification of the 
Canal, wasn't it? A. I do not know. I do not recall that. 

Q. You do not recall that? A. No, I do not. 

Q. Do you mean to sit here and tell this jury that you do 
not recall that England was opposed to the fortification of 
the Panama Canal? A. I do not recall it. 

Q. You, the owner of a newspaper like the New York 
"Times," don't recall that? A. It is displayed, what their 
attitude was. 

Q. Do you know what the New York "Times" is doing, at 
all, Mr. Ochs. A. I think so. 

Q. Did the New York "Times" ever protest against the 
seizure of the Hocking by England? Yes or no — The Ameri- 
can steamship Hocking that was seized on the high seas and 
taken into an English port, when it was engaged in lawful 



262 My Political Trial and Experiences 

trade with other countries. Did your paper ever protest against 
that in an editorial ? A. I do not know. 

Q. Don't you know it did not ? A. I do not know. 

Q. Do you remember that it did? A. I tell you that I do 
not know. 

Q. Do you remember when the Genesee was seized by Eng- 
land on the high seas, another American ship; do you re- 
member that, yes or no ; do you remember it, Mr. Ochs ? A. 
No, I do not remember it. 

Q. Did you ever hear of the Dacia? Do you remember the 
Dacia, a steamship owned by an American citizen that sailed 
from Galveston with a cargo of cotton for Germany, which 
was seized by France upon the high seas ? Do you remember 
that? A. No, I do not. 

Q. Don't you remember there was a good deal of public 
discussion in the newspapers at the time about the Dacia? 
A. 1 know there was a great deal of discussion about a great 
many subjects in the newspapers. 

Q. Well, a newspaperman is supposed to know? A. Well, 
I am one newspaper man that does not know everything. 

Q. I beg your pardon A. I am one newspaper man that 
don't know everything. 

Q. I thought you stated you did know about the editorial 
policy of your own paper? A. No; you asked me if I con- 
trolled the policy. 

Q. You stated you did. You said also, I think, you read the 
editorials, did you not, Mr. Ochs ? A. I did not. 

Q. Do you mean to say you do not read your own news- 
paper? A. What was your question a moment ago? 

Q. Do you read your own newspaper? A. I do. 

Q. Do you read every editorial that is written in it? A. 
I do not. 

Q. Did you ever hear of the Wilhelmina, another American 
ship, that was seized by England? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to this as totally immaterial. 

The Court — Overruled. A. I do not. 

Q. Do you remember the Note that was sent to England 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 263 

by President Wilson, in protest against England's interference 
with our lawful trade upon the high seas ? A. I have a general 
knowledge of it. 

Q. Aren't you interested in the diplomatic correspondence 
carried on in the interests of your own country by the Presi- 
dent of your own country, Mr. Ochs ? 

The Court — ^Oh, I can't allow that question. 

Mr. O'Leary — Your Honor, the inference here has to be 
contradicted; I think we are entitled to wide latitude when 
a newspaper owner like the owner of the New York "Times," 
who says he has control of its editorial policy, and then can- 
not tell anything at all about it is under cross-examination. 
I want to go into these things now to show that the policy 
of this magazine, "Bull," was not only justified, but was neces- 
sary in order to preserve American rights. Can't we ask him 
about the President of the United States sending Notes to 
England in protest ? He ought to know that. 

Q. Do you remember the Notes that were sent by the Presi- 
dent to England, protesting against England's interference 
with our lawful trade, and commerce, on the high seas? A. 
I have a general knowledge of it. 

Q. Did your newspaper in your editorial policy, ever approve 
of those Notes? A. I think it did. 

Q. Did your newspaper from the beginning of the European 
War, up to the opening, to the time of our entrance into the 
European War, ever make a serious, vigorous protest against 
Great Britain's invasion of our rights upon the high seas? 
Yes or no? A. Well, I think we did. 

Q. I beg your pardon? A. I think we did. 

Q. Do you remember when England took American mail 
oflF ships and ransacked it in Kirkwall ; do you remember that ? 
Don't you remember that? A. I remember it in a genera] 
way. 

Q. Don't you remember the diplomatic controversy that 
arose between the United States and Great Britain over this 
seizure of American mails in violation of the treaty rights 
of American citizens, between Great Britain and the United 
States? A. r recall such an incident. 



264 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Did your newspaper ever criticize Great Britain? A, 
I think it has frequently. 

Q. For seizing our mails? A. I do not know the detail. I 
cannot answer all these things in detail. 

Q. Do you remember when Great Britain mined the North 
Sea and served notice on the Neutral Powers of the world 
that they could sail only in certain parts of the North Sea, 
and lined out the course their ships were to follow; do you 
remember that at the very beginning of the war? A. I believe 
I have answered that question, that I remember these things in 
a general way, 

Q. Did your newspaper in its editorial colmnns ever protest 
against that? A. The newspaper columns will testify as to 
what was done. 

Q. Did you ever meet a man named Sir Gilbert Parker? 
A. I never did. 

Q. You do not know Sir Gilbert Parker? A. I know who 
he is. You asked me if I met him. 

Q. Yes — ^personally. A. No, I never did. 

Q. Have you ever had any men, any British subjects, men 
who were not American citizens, working on your newspaper? 
A. I could not answer that. I do not know. 

Q. Did you have a man named James, a newspaper reporter? 
Do you remember him working on your paper? A. Yes. 

Q. Was Mr. James an American citizen? A. I don't know. 

Q. Don't you know he was not? A. I do not. 

Q. Don't you know the newspapers contained an article that 
declared that he was not an American citizen, and he got in 
trouble with the courts on some matter he reported falsely? 
A. I do not know. 

Q. You do not remember that. A. I do not. 

Q. Now, how many times have you ever met Lord North- 
clifTe? A. Frequently. 

Q. Did you ever have dinner with him ? A. Yes. 

Q. Ever go out automobile riding with him? A. (Hesitat- 
ingly) I have been in an automobile with him, yes. 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 265 

Q. Before the United States entered the European War, 
Mr. Ochs, is it a fact that you met a great many British sub- 
jects in this country? A. It is not a fact. 

Q. Did you ever meet any British army officers here before 
we entered the war? A. I did not. 

Q. When was the first time you ever met Lord Northcliffe? 
A. Oh, many years ago. 

Q. How many years? A. Oh, ten or fifteen years ago, 
perhaps. 

Q. Where did you meet him first, in the United States or 
in England ? A. The United States, I think. 

Q. Did you ever meet him in London? A. Yes. 

Q. Did he entertain you there? A. Yes. 

Q. When was the last time you met him in London? A. 
I think perhaps in the spring of 1914, although I am not 
positive. 

Q. That was — A. It was just before the war. 

Q. Before we entered the European war? A. Yes, sir. I 
was in London the April of that year, and I think I perhaps 
met him then. 

Q. How long were you in London that time? A. Three or 
four days. 

Q. When were you in London the last time before that? A. 
Probably a year before. 

Q. How long were you there then ? A. Oh, a few days. I 
do not recall. 

Q. Did you meet Lord Northclifife then? A. I usually met 
him every time I was in London. 

Q. And when he came over here he usually met you, too? 
A. Frequently. 

Q. You were pretty good friends, weren't you? A. Up 
to what time? 

Q. Well, you met him fourteen or fifteen years ago first, 
and continued to meet him up to the time before we entered 
the European War? I say, you were pretty good friends? 
A. At what time do you think we were friends? 

Q. In 1914 you were friendly? A. On the 1st day of August, 



266 My Political Trial and Experiences 

1914, Lord Northcliffe had with the New York "Times" a 
decidedly disagreeable disagreement, and we have had no 
relationship whatever or intercourse with Lord Northcliffe 
since that date. 

Q. When was that? A. On the 2d of August, 1914, at the 
beginning of the war? 

Q. Were you in London then? A. I was not. 

Q. Was Lord Northcliffe over here? A. He was not. 

Q. While you were friendly with him, did you ever talk 
over the policies of the New York "Times"? A. Never in 
my life. 

Q. Did you discuss international questions ? A. Incidentally, 
perhaps. 

Q. Were you a member of the New York Peace Society? 
A. I think I am, I am not sure ; I believe I am. 

Q. Do you know Mr. Andrew Carnegie personally? A. 
Yes. 

Q. Did you know that Mr. Carnegie had practically com- 
mitted his entire fortune to the scheme of a British-American 
Union? A. I do not. 

Q. Have you ever read any of his writings ? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you know that in the North American Review, of 
1893, he came out flatfooted and said : "I can say" — 

Mr. Marshall — ^Oh, I object to that. 

The Court — Objection sustained. Mr. O'Leary — I will take 
an exception. 

Q. Do you remember an editorial in your own paper a few 
days ago stating that England was bearing, with the patience 
of a mother, the whimperings of America over the Embargo 
by Great Britain, that Great Britain had recently imposed 
against American goods? Did you read that in your paper? 
A. It sounds familiar. 

Q. So that the New York "Times," as you sit there on 
this stand, Mr. Ochs, is sympathizing with an Embargo that 
Great Britain has now placed upon American products ; is not 
that true ? A. It is not. 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 267 

Q. How can you construe these words to mean an)rthing 
else but sympathy? A. I leave you to construe them. 

Q. You leave that to me, and you leave it to your readers 
to construe, don't you? A. Yes. 

Q. Don't you know that those words were there for the 
purpose of getting your readers to believe that Great Britain's 
Embargo was right, and that American complaint about it 
was whimpering and wrong? Wasn't that your purpose? 
Wasn't that the purpose of your editorial policy? Yes or no. 

(Witness hesitates at least a minute.) 

Q. You don't answer. A. I can not answer your question. 
You wish me to put a construction on it. 

Q. Does it embarrass you a little? Doesn't it embarrass 
you a little, Mr. Ochs, to know that your own newspaper is 
opposed to the interests of your own country? Doesn't it 
embarrass you a little, Mr. Ochs ? Isn't that why you are silent ? 
A. No, it is because I do not agree with you as to the con- 
clusions you have drawn. 

Q. You think that the people — A. I insist that the New 
York "Times" stands first and all for Americanism. 

Q. Do you mean to say that the New York "Times" stands 
first for America, when it says that the American Senators, 
in the United States Senate, are complaining improperly about 
the Embargo, and that England is right? A. A difference of 
opinion in regard to an economic question. 

Q. Did you read in the columns of your own paper this 
morning this statement by Senator Reed : "Senator Reed turned 
and talked on the Carnegie Peace Foundation, saying that it 
was put forth as an American organization, and then had 
conspired with a lot of Germans, Hungarians, Swedes, and 
Englishmen to work out a policy that would affect the policy 
of our Government." Did you read that? 

The Court — That is not a proper question, what he read, 
that Senator Reed said about it. 

Mr. O'Leary — I withdraw the question, 

Q. Then, Mr. Ochs, you appreciate, don't you that when 
the editorials of your newspaper come out and sympathize 



268 My Political Trial and Experiences 

with Great Britain, that they are taking a position contrary 
to the expressed statements and policies of Representatives 
of your own country in the United States Senate. A. I resent 
the suggestion or intimation that the New York "Times" 
sympathizes with Great Britain in anything that is contrary 
to the best interests of the United States. 

Q. Mr. Ochs, when that editorial said that England was 
bearing, with the patience of a mother, the whimperings of 
America over the Embargo of Great Britain, that Great Bri- 
tain had made against the importation of American goods, 
weren't you expressing sympathy with Great Britain's posi- 
tion, and weren't you criticizing America, because America 
was complaining about it? 

Mr. Marshall — If your Honor please that has been gone 
into three times already. I object to it. 

The Court — I sustain the objection. 

Mr. O'Leary — If the Court please, every time that the de- 
fense gets a prosecution witness in a hole, Mr. Marshall makes 
the objection that we are taking up the Court's time. 

Mr. Marshall — The objection was sustained. 

Mr. O'Leary — I think before these objections are sustained, 
we should have the right to be heard. This witness has been 
offered here by the Government. 

The Court — I have ruled on this, Mr. O'Leary. If you have 
asked him a couple of times that question — 

Mr. O'Leary- — The point is, your Honor, the witness's mind 
is argumentative. It is the right of counsel in cross-examin- 
ing, when the witness's mind is argumentative, and when the 
fact in question is important to his credibility on testimony 
in chief, to attempt to put the question in different ways, in 
order to bring the witness to the point that counsel has in 
mind, and that is to prove that the statements he made or the 
inferences drawn from that statement, are not true, in his 
direct examination. 

Q. Mr. Ochs — A. Why don't you confine yourself to 
what I have replied here, in regard to what you have charged 
the New York "Times" with? 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 269 

Mr. Arthur O'Leary — I object to this statement of what 
you have charged the witness with. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — You can answer me in the "Times" 
tomorrow morning, Mr. Ochs. 

The Court — Gentlemen, don't argue. 

Q. Do you know your newspaper yesterday morning pub- 
lished an untrue statement of this trial? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that. 

The Court — Sustained. 

A. I do not, and if I knew it was untrue, I would discharge 
the man immediately. 

Q. Very well. We can do some reforming right here. 
Where is that paper? 

The Court — I am not going to allow you to go into this ; it 
is not germane to the inquiry. 

Q. You have been reading the accounts in your paper about 
this trial? A. I think so. 

The Court — ^Don't talk about this trial in the papers. Mr. 
O'Leary— All right. 

Q. Do you know any other English newspaper men besides 
Lord Northcliffe? A. How is that. 

Q. Do you know any other English newspaper men besides 
Lord Northcliffe? A. Yes, I know a few. 

Q. Where does the New York "Times" Company get its 
print paper from? A. At present? 

Q. Well, for the last four or five years ? A. Canada. 

Q. Don't Lord Northcliffe own the mills ? A. He does not. 

Q. Lord Northcliffe owns paper mills in Canada, doesn't 
he? A. I think so — (hesitating) — No, I do not believe he does. 

Q. Will you swear, Mr. Ochs, that Lord Northcliffe has 
no interest in any paper mill where your paper has bought 
print paper during the last ten years? A. I most solemnly 
swear that I have had no business relations of any kind, 
description or character with Lord Northcliffe, or the London 
"Times" in my life. 

Q. Do you draw a distinction between Lord Northcliffe 



270 My Political Trial and Experiences 

and paper companies he controls? A. The only paper com- 
pany that I know that Lord Northcliffe owns is a paper mill 
in Newfoundland, 

Q. Only one? A. That is the only one I know he con- 
trols. 

Q. Don't you know he controls others. A. I do not. 

Q. Were you able to buy print paper cheaper from that 
Canadian mill than you could buy from the International 
Paper Company here in this country ? A. I tried before to buy 
from the International Paper Company, and they would not 
sell it to me. 

Q. That question I asked was, don't you know you can 
buy print paper cheaper from Canadian mills than American 
producers ? A. No ; I paid a higher price in Canada. 

Q. Did you buy paper at the same time in Canada and the 
United States? A. I have bought paper at the same time in 
Canada and the United States. 

Q. Do you ever patronize the International Paper Company ? 
A. Yes. 

Q. How long since you last patronized it ? 

The Court — I can't allow you to go into that. 

Mr. O'Leary — In one of the articles in "Bull," we point out 
that in the case of the Louisville "Courier- Journal" the Louis- 
ville "Courier-Journal" is pro-British because, from a state- 
ment of a partner in Canada, it buys print paper in Canada 
at reduced rates. The Witness — I can probably answer your 
question. Our paper has been purchased from the Donnacona 
Paper Company in Canada. The paper company, I believe, 
is owned and controlled by Americans, and Mr. Gould of 
Lyons Falls, I believe, is the controlling owner, and others 
at Utica, New York; and our paper has been purchased of 
that mill for the past several years. So I should say it was 
an American-owned mill in Canada. 

Q. Is it not a fact that the New York "Times" has been 
given preference in International news, over every other Amer- 
ican newspaper ? A. No ; I do not know what you mean. 

Q. Didn't the New York "Times" get preference in regard 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 271 

to the alleged discovery of the North Pole by Cook? A, No. 

Mr. Marshall — I object to this. The Court — Sustained. 

Mr. O'Leary — I am going to show that by reason of these 
preferences — I won't state the purpose. The Witness — Mr. 
Cook has a libel suit against us, from the fact we questioned 
his statement of the discovery of the North Pole. 

Q. Do you remember Mr. Greaves, who died about two 
years ago, and who held an important position on your paper ? 
A. Arthur Greaves ? 

Q. Yes? A. Yes. 

Q. Wasn't he a British subject? A. I would be greatly 
surprised if he was ; not to my knowledge. 

Q. Do you remember a man named James, who gave up 
his American citizenship to become a British subject? A. I 
answered that before. 

Q. No, that was a reporter. I am speaking of Henry James. 
A. You mean the author ? 

Q. Yes. A. Yes. 

Q. Don't you know when he died that the New York 
"Times" said he became a better American citizen when he 
became a British subject, and said it editorially? Do you know 
that? A. I do not recall that. 

Q. You do not recall that? A. No, I do not. 

Q, Now Mr. Ochs — A. Why don't you ask me something 
about Lord Northcliffe; that is what you have been charging 
me with. 

Mr. O'Leary — If I was as powerful a man as you are 
and owned as many newspapers as you do, I would try to 
control everybody as you do ; but I have rights in court which 
I hope you will please respect. 

Q. Is it not a fact, Mr. Ochs, that England controls all 
the sources of news that come from Europe ? 

The Court — I cannot allow that question. ' 

Mr. O'Leary — All right. I take exception. That leads up 
to another question, another line of ideas that I want to cross- 
examine the witness on, on his testimony in chief. 



272 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Mr. Ochs, has the New York "Times" ever favored 
the freedom of Ireland. A. Yes, sir. 

Q. It has? Can you get me one copy of the New York 
"Times" that has an editorial which says that Ireland should 
be freed ? A. With respect to Home Rule. 

Q. Oh, Home Rule. That is not freedom — 

The Court — Now, don't make speeches. Mr. O'Leary — 
No indeed, your Honor. 

Q. Don't you know the difiference between Home Rule and 
freedom ? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that. The Court-^Sustained. 

Mr. O'Leary — That is to test the witness's intelligence. 

Q. Did you ever read the Declaration of Independence? 

Mr. Marshall— Objected to. 

The Court — I shall not allow that. 

Q. Did you ever read the Constitution of the United States ? 

The Court — I shall not allow that. 

Q. Is it not a fact that the New York "Times" has always 
not only opposed the freedom of Ireland, but has condemned 
and vilified men of Irish blood who favored it? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that. The Court — Sustained. 

Mr. O'Leary — I take an exception to each of the Court's 
rulings on the last three questions. 

Q. Is it not a fact that the New York "Times" has always 
opposed the freedom of Ireland because Great Britain was 
opposed to the freedom of Ireland, and because the New York 
"Times" followed that policy in deference to British interests? 
A. Positively no. 

Q. Did you read the language of the Declaration of In- 
dependence, that says all nations shall derive their just powers 
from the consent of the governed — 

The Court — I have refused to allow the question. 

Mr. O'Leary — The witness has now stated he did not do 
it because Great Britain did not want it. He must have some 
other reasons for it. 

The Court — We can not go into the Declaration of Independ- 
ence. 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 273 

Mr. O'Leary — That is what "Bull" was talking about all the 
time, your Honor, and that is one of the reasons why the 
magazine has continually said that the New York "Times" 
is controlled by British influences, because by some strange 
coincidence everything that England wants, the New York 
"Times" favors, even though it is opposed to the interests and 
ideals of the United States. 

The Court — I have ruled on it. 

Mr, O'Leary — Mr. Osborne is going to argue that I ought 
to be sent to jail for one hundred years because I criticised 
the New York "Times." * 

The Court — I have ruled on the question. Mr. O'Leary — I 
take an exception. The Court — Yes. 

Q. Mr. Ochs, are you aware of the fact that the New York 
"Times," in the month of April, 1916, published a statement 
to the effect that a man named Maurer, in the Washington 
Irving High School, said in a speech, publicly, "To hell with 
the Stars and Stripes," and then that Mr. Maurer in proceed- 
ings before the Board of Education, by the production of 
twenty-five witnesses, proved that statement was never made, 
and that an investigation disclosed that the statement was 
deliberately concocted by this reporter, James, who was a 
British subject. Do you know that? A. I do not. 

Q. Do you know Nicholas Murray Butler? A. I do. 

Q. Do you know George Haven Putnam? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you ever attend a banquet of the Pilgrims Society? 
A. Yes. 

Q. And did you ever attend a banquet of the St. George's 
Society ? A. I think not ; not that I recall. 

Q. Now, Mr. Ochs, which is it? "I think not" or "Not that 
I recall." A. Well, I would say I think not. 

Q. Will you swear you never did? A. I will swear I think 
I did not. 

Q. Before we entered the European war, did you ever meet 
Cecil Spring-Rice ? A. I did not. 

Q. Did you know him personally ? A. No. 



274 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Did you know the British Consul-General here in New 
York ? A. I do not. 

Q. Do you represent any British financial interests here in 
investments ? A. Do I ? 

Q. Yes. A. No. 

Q. Are you in the personal custody of your own stock ? A. 
I am. 

Q. You are sure it is not hypothecated? A. I am. 

Q. When the New York "Times" opened up its new build- 
ing up at Times Square did it have a public function there, 
a reception? • 

The Court — I can not allow that question. 

Mr. O'Leary — Well, it leads up to another question. 

The Court — I shall not allow it. Mr. O'Leary — I take an 
exception. 

Q. When the New York "Times" opened up its new build- 
ing did it have a public function at which Lord Northcliffe 
was present? A. I do not think it was coincident with the 
opening of the building. I remember we had a dinner up 
there in the "Times" Tower, at which Lord Northcliffe was 
present. 

Q. Was not the dinner in celebration of the opening of the 
building? A. No. 

Q. What floor was the dinner held on? 

The Court — Oh, I can not allow that. 

A. The twentieth floor. 

Mr. O'Leary — I take an exception. 

Q. Do you know that the New York "Times," on the 27th 
of July, 1917, published a description of a cartoon that was 
published in "Bull," entitled "The Lion and the Mouse," and 
that the news article contained a statement that the cartoon 
showed a picture of a rat, and that the American people were 
represented in the cartoon as a rat when, as a matter of fact 
they were represented as a mouse. Did you know that ? A. I 
did not. 

Mr. Marshall — I object to this as immaterial. Mr. O'Leary 
— No, it is right on the point. 



Adolph S. Ochs on the Grill 275 

Q. Do you remember the agitation in 1911 in favor of 
the Arbitration Treaties, that was carried on by Mr. Carnegie, 
Mr. Choate, Colonel Watterson, Nicholas Murray Butler, 
Frederick Coudert, and others, Mr. Ochs ? A. I don't remember 
the date of it. 

Q. You do remember the agitation? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you know that at that time the United States Senate, 
by a vote of the whole Committee on Foreign Relations with 
the exception of two members, had reported that those Treaties 
were unconstitutional? Do you remember that? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that. The Court — Sustained. Mr. 
O'Leary — It is the same line of questioning on the question 
of British influence. 

Q. Do you remember that in 1911 the British very strongly 
favored those Arbitration Treaties? 

Mr. Marshall — I object to that. The Court — Sustained. Mr. 
O'Leary — I will take an exception. 

Q. Can you mention one thing, Mr. Ochs, one incident, 
as the owner of the New York Times, where British interests 
conflicted with American interests, where the New York 
"Times" took the American side of the question and approved 
of it? A. I will say that the New York "Times" on every 
occasion has taken the American side of every question in 
which England was involved with controversy with the United 
States. 

Q. Mention a specific incident. A. I do not remember any 
incident, but I know that is the general policy of the paper. 
We may differ as to what are the best interests of America, 
but as far as the viewpoint of the New York "Times" is 
concerned, it is entirely and wholly influenced by a desire to 
promote the welfare of the United States against all, and every 
country, in every instance of that kind. 

Q. Where an atrocity was committed on the high seas 
by British sailors, do you consider it taking the American 
side of the question when the responsibility for that atrocity 
is voluntarily taken from the shoulders of the British who com- 
mitted it, and put upon American citizens? 



276 My Political Trial and Experiences 

The Court — You have asked that question once. Mr. Mar- 
shall — We have been over that once. Mr. O'Leary — I will 
take an exception. 

Q. Try and think, Mr. Ochs, of one instance where the 
New York "Times" came out on the American side of a 
question where British interests were involved. 

Mr. Marshall — That has been asked four times. The Court 
— Objection sustained. Mr. O'Leary — If your Honor please, 
the witness has stated that he can not do it. 

The Court — On the contrary, the witness has stated that in 
every instance where questions occurred between Great Bri- 
tain and the United States, the New York "Times" has taken 
the position of America, the United States — in every instance, 
wherever there was a question arising between the United 
States and Great Britain on every question you raised here. 

Q. These recent incidents — A. On every question you re- 
ferred to, the New York "Times" has taken the American side. 

Q. These recent incidents, where you said the Americans 
were whimpering about the British Embargo ? A. We thought 
we were taking the American side. 

Mr. Marshall — ^We have been over that four times, your 
Honor. 

Mr. O'Leary— That is all. 



IV 

ATTEMPTED SUBORNATION OF PERJURY. 

At this point of the government's case, the court-room was 
appalled at a revelation which never reached the public through 
the medium of the press. A government witness, Miss Marie 
E. Durand was on the witness stand. She was a reporter for 
a small local newspaper published in the City of New York, 
known as "The Harlem Home News" in 1918 and on the 
night of August 11 reported a meeting at which I spoke and 
at which the government contended I delivered a speech which 
incited to mutiny. Miss Durand was a Canadian and made a 
very favorable impression upon the witness stand. The prose- 
cutors, with a copy of her paper before her, examined her 
about my speech but were only able to adduce from her that 
I had asked a question of some drafted men in the audience 
whom I had told to hold up their hands in words or effect, 
"Are you going to fight for England"? She was sure the 
answer of the drafted men was, "No." It was quite clear that 
the prosecutor, Mr. Osborne, was endeavoring to have her 
corroborate the report she had published in her paper but his 
efforts were futile. Her manner suggested that she wanted 
to be truthful but was under some restraint. There was some- 
thing on her mind. When my brother, Arthur, undertook 
to cross-examine her, he succeeded by a very clever line of 
questions in placing in the record of my trial the first absolute 
evidence that some part of $80,000,000 of the Secret Service 
Fund of the United States government spent under executive 
auspices had been used in connection with my case and the 
securing and the influencing of witnesses. The testimony is 
shocking, and more so, because during the trial it was not con- 
tradicted or explained. Under such circumstances, the Depart- 
ment of Justice practically pleaded guilty to the evil suggestion 
that lay beneath. I quote her testimony verbatim : 

277 



278 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Mrs. Durand, where do you live? A. 420 West 121st 
Street. 

Q. Have you always lived there? A. No. 

Q. Are you an American citizen? A. I have not completed 
my naturalization; I have my first papers. 

Q. Of what country are you a citizen or subject? A. 
Technically I am a subject of Great Britain. 

Q. Who was it that first suggested that you come here as a 
witness? A. Mr. Ackerland. 

Q. And who is he? A. He is the United States Immigra- 
tion Inspector, or one of them, at Halifax, Canada. 

Q. Were you in Halifax at that time? A. Yes. 

Q. Halifax, Nova Scotia? A. Yes. 

Q. When was that? A. That was in the latter part of 
April, 1918. 

Q. Was any arrangement made with you then in regard 
to compensation if you came here to testify ? A. It was agreed 
that my transportation expenses would be paid and my salary 
for the week that it would take me to come here and return 
and a couple of days in New York. 

Q. Did you know you were under no legal liability to come 
here? That you could not be compelled to come here from 
Nova Scotia? A. I did not think I could be compelled to come 
if I did not want to come ; that is, I do not think I gave it any 
thought, in fact, or much thought. 

The Court : Is your visit here now a result of that arrange^ 
ment, or have you been to New York before as a result of such 
an arrangement? A. My presence in New York now has 
nothing whatever to do with that arrangement. 

Q. Did you come to New York in pursuance to that arrange- 
ment in regard to compensation at that time? A. I did not 
come to New York in consideration of any compensation what- 
ever. I came because the Government asked me to come, and 
that is why I came here in May. 

Q. Did you receive any expenses or compensation ? A. I re- 
ceived my transportation and one week's ^lary at the rate at 



Attempted Subornation of Perjury 279 

which I was being employed in the employment I was in at the 
time. 

Q. How much was that salary? A. Fifty dollars. 

Q. And from whom did you get it? A. I got it here from 
one of the offices in this building ; I am really not sure ; I think 
the check was mailed to me; I am really not sure. 

Q. Was anything said to you at that time in Nova Scotia 
or at any other time about any additional compensation you 
might receive for your testimony? A. I was not promised; 
I did not expect any additional compensation. 

Q. Please answer my question, I will ask the stenographer 
to read it. (Last question read.) 

A. There was something said that sounded like a hint. 

Q. What was that hint ? A. But I certainly did not take it, 
and that is straight. 

Q. What was that hint, Mrs. Durand? A. Well, this Mr. 
Ackerland came into my office and asked me if I remembered 
being at this meeting and if I remembered anything about it 
and so on, and if I would be willing to come back to New 
York and testify at the trial. When he told me about the 
indictment; I am not sure that I knew about the indictment 
before that or not, I told him then just exactly practically 
what I have testified this morning and finished up by saying 
that I did not think the testimony I had to offer was of any 
value, that is, was of any importance, but that if the govern- 
ment wanted me to return to New York, I would, but of 
course it was understood my transportation would be paid 
and my salary from the time I left Halifax, while here and 
until I returned. 

Q. What was the hint you said was made about additional 
compensation ? A. When I was through explmning that I did 
not think my testimony was going to he of any importance, 
he remarked something about the Department of Justice hav- 
ing plenty of funds or not being hampered for funds, and in 
fact it was the only department of the government that was 
not questioned in regard to expenditures, and that the Govern- 
ment zvas always supposed to be liberal or generous, or some- 



280 My Political Trial and Experiences 

thing like that, for those that showed themselves obliging; 
but that absolutely has had no influence on my testimony. 

Q. I do not mean to suggest it had any influence on your 
testimony. I was just trying to bring out how some of these 
agents are doing the government's business in advance of trial 
by suggesting that there are unlimited funds if those whom 
they expect to testify would do the right thing, I do not mean 
to suggest that it has had any influence on you. A. Neither 
Mr. Barnes nor Mr. Osborne attempted to influence my testi- 
mony in any way, shape or form. 

Mr. Arthur T. O'Leary: I will ask the district attorney to 
produce vouchers showing payments made. 

Mr. Osborne : They are not in my office ; they are filed with 
the Marshal of the United States. 

Mr, O'Leary: The right hand does not know what the left 
hand is doing, is that the idea? 

The Court: Do not make those comments. 

Mr, Osborne: It is an entirely different office and you may 
subpoena them; probably they are in Washington, 

Mr. O'Leary : You might rise and address the court, 

Mr. Osborne : I am addressing you. 

The Witness : I am perfectly ready to solemnly swear that 
there never was any mention of money of that description be- 
tween Mr. Osborne, Mr. Barnes and myself, and that I am 
absolutely not influenced in any way, shape or form by any 
promise, offer or expectation, and I do not want any money 
for it. What is more, I would not take it. 

(This testimony created a sensation in the courtroom.) 



MME. GONZALES ADMITS PERJURY. 

The case needed several connecting links; one to connect 
me with Victorica. Aubrey Pettit, Chief of Police of Long 
Beach, was produced to supply that; another to associate me 
with Carl Roediger. Charles A. Martin, the "Hull Inspector," 
employed by the Government, was educated to forge that. 
Another was to connect me with Willard J. Robinson's trip 
to Holland. Arthur L. Lyons was tortured for fifteen days 
by a cruel third degree to make that. A further link was needed 
to fasten upon me an overt act which would supply the intent 
necessary under the statute to justify the court in sending 
my case to the jury. Mme. Gonzales was groomed to manu- 
facture that. The plan was ingeniously conceived but clumsily 
executed. "The best laid plans of mice and men gang aft 
aglee." So with Pettit, Martin, Lyons and Gonzales. Of all 
the horrible spectacles presented in any court of justice on 
earth, Mme. Gonzales was the most pitiable. Like Mme. Vic- 
torica she was a woman of prepossessing appearance, selected 
and accepted no doubt to influence the jury. She was a de- 
cided brunette. She breezed to the witness stand with a gen- 
erous red hat, a slight flush, but brazen and self-possessed. 
Apparently forty years, she looked as if she had "a past" and 
knew something of the world. While James W. Osborne 
circled about for a place to stand, she gazed about the court- 
room with no show of instinctive feminine modesty, her lips 
curling into a smile as she struggled to present an aspect of 
unconcern, as though she had nothing to fear and as if what 
she was about to do was an ordinary usual routine act of her 
daily life. 

I never saw her before; at least I could not recollect her. 
So I leaned over to my brother John, and asked him who she 
was and what she might say. The question was soon answered, 

281 



282 My Political Trial and Experiences 

as Mr. Osborne led her along to a meeting of the Irish Bazaar 
workers, held at a small hall, known now as 715 Lexington 
Avenue, New York, on July 17th, 1917. She said she had 
received a notice from John J. O'Leary, my brother, who was 
the manager of that great bazaar which was held at Madison 
Square Garden, New York, in October, 1916, at which over 
$48,000 was raised for the suffering Irish people, particularly 
those of Dublin, after the British had wrecked the city during 
the Easter Rebellion of 1916, following which they transported 
almost three thousand men, supporters of dependents, to Eng- 
lish prisons. She also said she had been a worker at this 
bazaar, and had been asked to co-operate by Alphonse G. 
Koelble, of New York, who aided in the enterprise. Since she 
saved her letter and envelope for this day, almost two years 
later, I was convinced that in reality she was an Agent of the 
Department of Justice, spying on Americans of Irish descent. 
She later admitted in cross-examination that she saved the let- 
ter and envelope to use them, and also reluctantly admitted 
that she knew Mr. Offley, and that Agents of the Government 
had called upon her, to whom she had reluctantly told her story. 
Reluctantly ! Yes, a part of the game. If she could impress 
the jury with the fact that she was a reluctant witness she 
might induce a gullible jury to believe what I know was plain, 
deliberate perjury, and what we proved to the jury was per- 
jury. 

She said the meeting was called to oppose conscription ; that 
I made a speech in which I called the President a monarch, de- 
nounced conscription, said we must fight it, that "BviU" was 
doing the work effectively, and other things of a similar nature 
which would leave no doubt in any mind if I made such a 
speech that my intention was to oppose conscription. 

I cross-examined her. She held fast, although her memory 
proved very defective in several instances. I caught her once 
when she identified a woman, Mrs. Mary Schulte, as having 
been there; this was a falsehood. She said the meeting was 
very secret, the curtains were drawn, and the windows and 
doors closed, although the room was crowded and the night 



Mme. Gonzales Admits Perjury 283 

one of the warmest of the warm Summer of 1917, a condi- 
tion whidi would have suffocated every person in the room. 
Her testimony was contradicted by every other witness who 
was present on that occasion and shattered completely, as 
woman after woman took the stand and indignantly denied 
that the Irish Relief Bazaar workers ever conspired under any 
leadership to resist the draft. 

The testimony of Mme. Gonzales was an attack on the 
loyalty of the Irish race, and was so intended by the prosecu- 
tion. It charged the Bazaar workers, who, inspired by motives 
of charity in 1916, had organized to help raise money to re- 
lieve distress in Ireland, with a conspiracy in 1917 to obstruct 
the draft. It was quite plausible, but crudely done. As a 
matter of fact, the Bazaar workers had been called together for 
the purpose of compiling and classifying for future reference 
the names of all contributors to the Bazaar, over sixty thousand 
citizens of New York City, including many of the most promi- 
nent citizens — a valuable asset if preserved for the Irish cause. 
Her idea was that the plan was to classify the names to resist 
the draft by raising an army or by starting a revolution. This 
meant that such prominent citizens as the late Cardinal Farley, 
Charles F. Murphy, Judges Morgan J. O'Brien and Victor J. 
Dowling, and many others, were to have been appealed to as 
aids in the lawlessness. Could any sane person believe that 
the United States Government, by its constituted and appar- 
ently responsible authorities, could ever present such a pre- 
posterous and absurd theory to an American jury? Yet it was 
deliberately done, and when the case ended my lawyers ridi- 
culed the perjury out of court. The newspapers, of course, 
never published this revelation. They had a reason for silence. 
They had also made preposterous charges against me. They 
were participes criminis in the campaign of vilification which 
had been carried on against me, and which reached its climax 
in the indictments filed at a time when some war-mad and 
hysterical citizens were actually clamoring for my blood. 

If Americans are anxious to learn why the man who was 
convicted by a false public opinion is now at liberty, after a 



284 My Political Trial and Experiences 

trial in which his calumniators were convicted, let them read 
these very few excerpts from the cross-examination of Mme, 
Gonzales. I apologize for their publication. I am sorry to be 
compelled to shock and offend virtuous women with the vile 
mess I was compelled to wring from this still viler woman, yet 
the seriousness of the situation requires it. There is an old 
saying, "Something must be rotten in Denmark." I might 
amend that by paraphrasing it: "There must be something 
rotten in the United States when a family man is driven from 
a home, a wife and four children, when the loyalty and patriot- 
ism of an American of Irish blood, with almost forty male 
relatives in the war, is questioned; when parents' hearts are 
broken and friends are made dubious by the accepted testi- 
mony of a woman who has admitted herself under oath to be 
an abortionist, a perjurer, immoral and dissolute, I thank God 
that in the final analysis, after all that has been said and writ- 
ten about me, that those who undertook to prove the mendacity 
of almost a decade; those who undertook to assert that Irish- 
men were traitors, had to reach down into the depths of in- 
famy to secure the evidence that no decent, self-respecting 
American could utter." 

With this apology and explanation, for the benefit of my 
race and the country I love, I present the record, in part only, 
but sufficient, I hope, to dispel the clouds which hovered about 
me for at least five years — clouds that darkened even my prison 
cell, where for almost a year I was denied the light of God's 
day. 

Mrs. Manuel Gonzales, recalled by Thomas G. Felder, of my 
counsel, thus testified : 

Q. How many children have you? A. I have no children. 

Q. Did you ever have any ? A. Yes. 

Q. When? A. I lost a child in 1912, I believe. 

Q. Who was the father of that child ? A. My husband. 

Q. Which one? A. Clarence Heberger. 

Q. What was the name of that child? A. Francis. 

Q. How old was the child when it died? A. Fourteen 
months. 



Mme. Gonzales Admits Perjury 285 

Q. And that child's father was your first husband, Mr. He- 
berger. A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You say that this .child died at the age of 14 months? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Her name was Frances ? A. Heberger, 

Q. And it died when? A. I think in 1915. 

Q. 1915? A. 1912, 1911 or 1912. 

Q. Your husband was drowned in June, 1909. A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Then that was a pretty long period of gestation, wasn't 
it ? A. My child was fourteen months old when he died. 

Q. Now your husband was drowned in June, 1909? A, 
Do I have to answer these questions, your Honor ? 

The Court — Yes. 

Q. And the child died in 1915? A. No, I think he was 
fourteen months old when he died; it was either 1910 or 1911, 
1911 or 1912. 

Q. Do you know Mr. Francisco Valenti ? A. Not at present. 

Q. Did you ever know him? A. Yes. 

Q. Where did you know him? A. In New Haven. 

Q. Were you ever married to him ? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you ever institute any proceedings against Mr. 
Francisco Valenti ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What about? A. You have the record there. 

Q. Never mind about my having it. You are on the stand. 
What was the nature of those proceedings ? A. I don't care to 
tell. 

Q. You don't care to tell? A. No. 

Q Well, I will have to insist on it. A. You cannot insist. 

Q. I cannot insist? A. No. 

Q. Did you not institute a suit against Francisco Valenti, 

alleging that he was the father of your child? A. 

I refuse to answer the question. 

Q. You testified a few moments ago when examining you 
that you never had but one child, and that was a girl child 
by the name of Frances? A. He was a boy. 

Q. A boy child by the name of Francis? A. Yes. 

Q. That died in 1912? A. Yes. 



286 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Is that this child? A. I refuse to answer. 

Q. Upon what ground ? A. The same ground. 

Q. That it will incriminate you. I will repeat this ques- 
tion. Was Qarence Heberger the father of that child? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. Well, then, what child was Francisco Valenti the father 
of? A. I refuse to answer. 

Q. Where is the child or where was the child, or was there 
any child born to you that Valenti was the father of ? A. You 
do not understand. I refuse to answer any of those questions. 

Q. Don't you know you told the truth when you said you 
never gave birth to but one child ? A. I refuse to answer. You 
are only wasting time. 

Q. You answered that when I first put the question to you ? 
A. I have been the mother of one child, but I did not say I 
was the mother of only one child. 

Q. You said you had but one child, and that child was Fran- 
cis, and died in 1912, aged fourteen months ? A. I had another 
child taken from me also. 

Q. What do you mean by taken from you? A. With an 
operation. 

Q. Was it taken dead ? A, Why, yes. 

Q. The dead child is not the one you were calling upon 
Valenti to support ? A. I refuse to answer. 

Q. Where did this child Francis die ? A. I refuse to answer 
that. 

Q. I submit that is proper, if your Honor please ; that could 
not incriminate her. A. All that testimony will incriminate 
me. 

Q. What? A. All that testimony will incriminate me. 

Q. You did not kill the child, did you? A. Hardly. 

Q. Will you tell the jury how you could be incriminated 
if you had a child by your husband and the child died by 
telling when it died and where it is buried? A, All of the 



Mme. Gonzales Admits Perjury 287 

questions which Col. Felder has put to me since I have been 
on the witness stand will incriminate me. 

Q. Mrs. Gonzales, did you ever have outside of the Valenti 
experience, did you ever sue out a warrant against anybody 
else, against any other man for ? A. I refuse to an- 
swer that question. 

Q. Oh, you do. Upon what ground? A. The same reason 
that I refused to answer any of your questions this morning. 

Q. It would incriminate you? A. No, not necessarily. 

Q. Well, then I want you to answer it. A. And I am not 
going to because that would incriminate me, in the questions 
you asked me this morning. 

Q. Have you ever had any other man except this man 

there in New Haven, arrested for ? A. I refuse 

to answer, 

Q. Upon the ground it will incriminate you? A. On the 
ground in connection with the case you asked me of this 
morning. 

Q. How many men have you had arrested for ? 

A. I refuse to answer for the same reason. 

Q. How many children have you had that were ? 

A. I refuse to answer for the same reason. 

Q. Well, now, when you were on the stand this morning 
I asked you how many children you had and you said you 
had one? A. I told you also I had one taken from me. 

Q. You told me that later. How many did you have taken 
from you? A. I refuse to answer. 

Q. How many operations have you had perfo/rmed on 
you? A. One. 

Q. Which one was that? A. I refuse to answer. 

Q. You refuse to answer? You had only one operation 
performed on you? A. I had at least one performed. I 
don't know whether there might have been one for abortion. 
/ don't believe that was an operation, it was an abortion. 

Q. In what stage of development was the child if it was 
removed? A. Why, I don't know just exactly. 



288 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. You don't know? Do you know approximately? A. 
No, sir. 

Q. That was not the child that you got this support for, for 
four years, was it ? A. I refuse to answer. 

Q. Oh, you do. You know that an abortion is a criminal 
offense, do you not? A. Yes, sir; / didn't have an abortion 
operation performed. 

Q. What? A. I have no abortion performed on me. 

Q. You had one performed on you, didn't you, you so 
said? A. One operation, I had one operation performed. 

Q. What sort of an operation? A. An operation to save 
my life, to take the babe from me, and if the operation had 
not been performed I would have died. 

Q. Why? A. Because I had an accident at that time, I had 
fallen in a bathtub. 

Q. You stated a moment ago here, you just stated that — 
you said you hadn't had one performed? A. I had to have 
an operation on that, I had fallen in a bathtub, I had slipped 
and fallen in a bathtub. 

Q. When was that? A. I refuse to answer. 

Q. You refuse to answer. Well, it would not incriminate 
you to tell the jury when you fell in the bathtub, would it? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. That would incriminate you ? A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Arthur O'Leary — Mrs. Gonzales, do you belong 
to some Jewish women's society ? A. I belong to one now. 

Q. There was one that you severed your connection with? 
A. Yes. 

Q. What was the name of that? A. I did not sever my con- 
nection, I was expelled. 

Q. You were expelled for stealing? A. No, I was not, 
the president blamed that upon me. 

Q. Didn't you consult a lawyer about the incident? A. I 
did. 

Q. Because you were going to sue them for slander? A. 
Yes, sir ; no, I was not going to sue them for slander. She had 
a lawyer write to me and ask me to refute my statement. 



Mme. Gonzales Admits Perjury 289 

Q. That is the crime that you refer to? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What lawyer did you consult? A. Mr. Jordan. 

Q. Any other lawyers? A. No, I don't think so. 

Q. Are you sure about that? A. I am quite sure. 

Q. Will you swear to that? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you know Patrick Cotter? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you consult Mr. Cotter? A. He consulted with us 
at that time. 

Q. You consulted Mr. Cotter ? A. They asked me to do so. 

Q. You consulted with him in regard to being expelled 
from this organization, did you not? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Will you swear that Mr. Cotter did not investigate this 
incident, and that he found that you were a thief, and refused 
to take your case? A. He did not take up any investigation. 

Q. Answer that yes or no. A. No, 

Q. Tsn't it a fact, that he refused to take your case ? Answer 
that yes or no? A. Yes, but not for that reason. 

Q. Now that is enough. You knew you consulted Mr. Cotter 
when I spoke to you first ? A. No, I did not recall the in- 
cident. I have nothing to hide. 

Q. You have nothing to hide? A. No. 

Q. Why did you refuse to answer all these questions about 

these children, if you had, if you thought you had 

nothing to hide? A. I said that I had nothing to hide about 
that society. 

Q. Answer yes or no, please. A. I said that I had nothing 
to hide about that case. 

Q. Now, Madam, you testified this niorning that your 
husband Heberger died in 1909, didn't you ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You testified that he was drowned in 1909, didn't you? 
And you testified that you had one child, a boy, named Francis, 
who died in 1912, didn't you, didn't you? A. Yes. 

Q. And you also testified, did you not, that this husband 
who died in 1909 was the father of that child, didn't you? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And didn't you also testify that that child who died in 
1912, died at the age of fourteen months? A. Yes, sir. 



290 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. What time in 1912 did the child die? A. I don't just 
remember. 

Q. Don't you remember the month that your own child 
died? A. No. 

Q. Make any impression on your mind at all, that date? A. 
Indeed it did. 

Q. You say you don't remember the month in which that 
child died, and yet you have testified here to the speech that 
was made by the defendant, O'Leary, a year and a half ago, 
is that right? A. Yes. 

Q. And in considerable detail, have you not? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Now when you swore this morning in court that this 
incident about Heberger being the father of that child that died 
in 1912, didn't you know you were testifying falsely? An- 
swer yes or no. A, Yes, and I have decided to tell the whole 
truth. 

Q. Answer that yes or no. A. Yes. 

Q. You knew you were testifying falsely? A. Yes, I did, 
and I thought the matter over — 

Q. Your answer is yes ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Well, now then, you have committed perjury, you know 
that, don't you ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Now, madam, have you been assured by any of the De- 
partment of Justice officials, have they given you any assurance 
that you would not be prosecuted for any perjury that you 
may have committed in this case? A. No, sir. 

Q. Who made up that speech, that you said O'Leary told 
in Lexington Avenue in 1917, was that Dr. Bischoff or Croppy, 
or who was it? A. Made up the speech that he made? 

Q. Now, madam, you have admitted that you committed 
perjury this morning, right here before these gentlemen? A. 
And I have done so in answering a question, yes. 

Q. Do you expect to be prosecuted in this court for that 
perjury that you just admitted you had committed? A. I 
want to tell the jury the truth. 

Q. Answer yes or no, I am entitled to that answer. A. I 
don't know. 



Mme, Gonzales Admits Perjury 291 

Q. Don't you know you are not going to be prosecuted for 
the perjury which you yourself have been committing? A. 
If I tell the truth, I think so. 

Q. Answer yes or no. Do you expect here that either Mr. 
Osborne or Mr. Taylor or any of these gentlemen here will 
prosecute you for the perjury that you have committed here? 
A. I don't know. 

Q. Do you expect the government will prosecute you for 
the perjury that you committed here this morning? A. I don't 
know. 

Q. Don't you know, madam, that none of these agents, none 
of these investigators from the Department of Justice or any of 
the District Attorneys here, are going to prosecute you for 
any perjury that you have committed here at this time, when 
you have been committing it upon this stand here before this 
jury in this case? A. I don't know. 

Q. What was your maiden name, before you were married 
first? A. Josephine Lowenstein. 

Q. Didn't you tell the women at these Irish bazaars that 
you were of Spanish descent? A. No, my husband is, my 
husband is Spanish. 

Q. Didn't you tell them that you were a Spanish lady, of 
Spanish extraction? A. No, I did not. 

Q. You have become quite a studious bazaar worker, have 
you not, madam? A. Well, I have only worked in a few of 
the bazaars. 

Q. Didn't you give up a lot of time to the work in these 
bazaars? A. Yes, five or six weeks. 

Q. And that is during the period that you were drawing 
this alimony from this man which you claim was sufficient to 
support you while you were working in these bazaars? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. It was during that period that you filed an affidavit in 
court, that you needed more money for your support, it was 
during that time that you were working in these bazaars ? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. Now I ask you if your object in working in these 



292 My Political Trial and Experiences 

bazaars was not for the opportunities it offered you to steal, 
and to get something out of it so as to get more money 
for your own support, in addition to what you were getting 
from these men, these other men on the side? Did you also 
bring actions against these men also? A. No, I didn't do 
these things which you are reciting. 

Q. I ask you again if it is not a fact, that you were work- 
ing at these many charitable bazaars during the period that 
you were filing the affidavit to the effect that you needed more 
money for your support, for the sole purpose of stealing the 
money and adding to your support in that way, yes or no? 
A. r gave you my answer to that, I am not a lawyer, but I 
don't steal. 

Q. Just answer the question, please, yes or no. A. I cer- 
tainly did not. 

Q. Is your testimony in regard to what you have just stated, 
as true as your testimony in regard to the father of your 

child, which you gave this morning, yes or no? A. I 

refuse to answer that question. 

Q. Do you refuse to answer upon the ground that that will 
also incriminate you? A. Yes. 

Q. There are a great many things, there are many, many, 
a great many things that would incriminate you, madam, if 
you testified to the absolute truth, are there not ? A. No. 

Q. Haven't you refused to answer a great many things here 

this morning about children, and about compelling men 

to put up money to support children on the ground that it 
would tend to incriminate you, absolutely degrade you to tell 
the truth ? A. I refuse to answer any questions on the grounds 
that I have said to you this morning. 

Q. How much money are you getting from the Secret 
Service fund of the Department of Justice? A. I got twelve 
dollars for being a witness down here until my time was up, 
which was a dollar and a half a day. That is all I received. 

Q. Did any agent of the Department of Justice tell you 
like they told Mrs. Durand, that the Department of Justice 
of the United States Government, that they had unlimited 



Mme. Gonzales Admits Perjury 293 

funds, and that they were very generous with anybody, who 
did the right thing by them? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did nobody tell you that? A. No, sir. 

Mr. Osborne — He is misquoting Mrs. Durand's testimony; 
her testimony is that an agent of the Department of the In- 
terior, or the Custom House, or Immigration, told her some 
such statement as that. 

Mr. O'Leary — Whatever branch of the government it re- 
ferred to. 

Q. Madam, is the testimony which you have given here 
in regard to what Jeremiah O'Leary said at this Lexington 
Avenue meeting in August or July, 1917, as true as the testi- 
mony that you gave this morning to the effect, that your hus- 
band Heburger was the father of your child? A. 

The testimony — 

Q. Now answer that yes or no. A. I refuse to answer. 



VI 

MME. VICTORICA SHOCKS JURORS. 

When historians essay to write a real political history of 
the European War in its relation to intrigues, I hope they will 
establish the true status of Madame Marie de Victorica. The 
"New York Sun" said she "smacked more of Paris than 
Berlin." While testifying she pronounced the name of many 
cities with a decidedly French accent. Her behavior, manner, 
appearance, and dress were anything but German. She emerged 
from her theoretical confinement at Ellis Island on February 
10th, 1919, to bear witness against me, with the air of a woman 
who had just finished with her maids in some sumptuous 
hotel, a picture of style and affected beauty. Her toilet was 
attended to scrupulously even to lip rouge and powder puff, 
and she was surrounded with the aroma of highly-scented 
perfumes. The Department of Justice had done an excellent 
job on its star witness. If she was a German spy she had 
been well attended. She appeared to have been well fed and 
well cared for. Whatever they have at Ellis Island, where she 
had been "confined," whatever attentions she received which 
gave her that fresh prepossessing appearance, they did not have 
them within the frowning walls of the Tombs — where Margaret 
Sullivan, her maid, John Gill, Willard Robinson, and I had 
been confined for ten months. 

Fortunate are they who in criminal or political prosecutions 
have become the chief witness for the persecutors. Apparently 
the people's moneys are lavishly spent to please and comfort 
them. I daresay that nowhere on the outside could any but a 
very wealthy woman secure gratis the attentions "the blonde 
lady" had received. She strutted to the witness stand to take 
my liberty away like a prima donna entering upon the stage. 
She was very clever. She carried herself with hauteur as 

294 



Mme. Victorica Shocks Jurors 295 

though she enjoyed the gaze of hundreds of spectators whose 
eyes were riveted upon her. Her air was decidedly theatrical, 
she posed, smiled, and began her testimony with supreme 
assurance. 

Briefly, and in substance, she testified that she had been 
introduced to me by a man named Emil Kippur; that I had 
dined with her at the Hofbrau House in January, 1917; that I 
had called upon her at an apartment at 69th Street and Broad- 
way, New York ; at the Netherlands Hotel ; and at Long Beach ; 
that in March, 1917, I had introduced to her a man named 
John T. Ryan; and in March, 1917, to another man, Willard 
J. Robinson; that she had sent Mr. Robinson to Holland to 
carry a message for her to representatives of the German 
Government. She also stated I had submitted to her an edi- 
torial I had written for "Bull," which she had approved, and, 
finally, that in procuring Robinson I had placed a stipulation 
upon her that "nothing should be done to injure the United 
States." My testimony, however, was different. She was 
introduced to me by Mr. Kippur, but only as a client; that 
in the early part of 1917 she came to my office to employ me 
in proposed annulment proceedings against her husband, 
who was insane when she married him and who had decamped 
to parts unknown with approximately $35,000 of her fortune ; 
that they were married in Buenos Aires, Argentina; that she 
was residing in a hotel; was going to move to an apartment 
house ; that she asked me to recommend an employment agency 
because she wanted a reliable maid ; that prior to her visit to my 
office, an Irish girl,, Margaret Sullivan had applied to me to 
aid her in obtaining employment, as many others had on pre- 
vious occasions ; that I had accommodated her by sending Miss 
Sullivan to her ; that I called on her once at the Netherlands, 
met her accidentally at the Hofbrau Haus, and never met her 
at Long Beach; that in June, 1917, I grew suspicious of her, 
when she did not seem serious about her legal matter and dis- 
missed her from my mind. There were other details, but these 
were the most important. 

To substantiate my testimony, I produced a two-page type- 



296 My Political Trial and Experiences 

written memorandum, verified by my stenographer, made when 
she called at my office, which proved that her visits there were 
professional. This memorandum the Government did not ques- 
tion, although it clearly impeached her testimony. I denied 
emphatically her testimony otherwise, and the jury in its 
verdict accepted my denial. Her evidence had no strict con- 
nection with the "Bull" case, but Judge Hand let it in on the 
theory of intent as tending to show what my intentions were 
when I was editing "Bull," a rather far-fetched theory, since 
"Bull" was started in March, 1916, almost a year before Mme 
Victorica entered the case, and since "Bull's" policy had been 
established before the war, and had been consistently followed 
until October, 1917, when the last number was issued. Per- 
mitting such testimony to go before the jury was simply a case 
of dumping everything into the "Bull" pen and I was glad it 
happened since it gave me a chance to expose this mysterious 
woman who was the Government's mainstay in its plan to 
send me to prison, and prior to that as Mr. Matthews informed 
me, in its plan to send me to the scaffold. Prison would suffice 
now to satisfy all political grudges, since the armistice had 
been signed. 

My brother, Arthur, undertook the cross-examination — a 
quiet, careful, determined and incisive inquisition — into her 
character and credibility. Arthur, with the hospital record at 
Bellevue, one of New York's greatest hospitals, compelled her 
to admit that she was a drug fiend, addicted to the use of mor- 
phine to the extent of eight grains a day for over twenty years. 
She contradicted herself, frequently. At Bellevue she stated 
she was born in Buenos Aires; on the witness stand, in Ger- 
many. Under Mr. Osborne's questions, she declared that she 
was a German agent; under Arthur's, that she was not. She 
admitted she would do anything to get morphine; that she 
would even lie to get it; and that she was an utter slave to 
the drug. She admitted visits from Dr. Frederick Bischoff, 
the American Protective League "volunteer detective," at least 
twice a week, and that they talked about the case sometimes for 
hours at a time. She admitted frequent visits from others. 




Miss Margaret Sullivan, held in the Tombs for one year as a material 
witness and never called in Court. 



Mme. Victorica Shocks Jurors 297 

She admitted she had been taken shopping, on automobile rides, 
that she had never been placed behind prison bars, as I had 
been, or Margaret SulHvan, her maid, who had been held for 
one year as a material witness. She contradicted herself in 
many other details. When she had finished her testimony, the 
jurors were plainly shocked. 

Before she testified at all, the defense demanded an oppor- 
tunity to examine her. The Court denied the request upon the 
Government's objection, although she admitted having re- 
ceived an injection of morphine before she had come to Court. 
The jury, with the exception of Ernest R. Hunter, the foreman, 
appeared to be very skeptical of her, and, I was informed later 
by a juror, that the jury when it retired unanimously agreed to 
disregard her entire testimony. This fact, of itself, should be 
sufficient to dispose of Madame Victorica. Yet I cannot refrain 
from setting forth a medical opinion of her from the lips of Dr. 
Perry Lichtenstein of the Tombs, an eminent expert, cor- 
roborated by three other eminent physicians, Doctors Smith 
Ely Jelliffe, one of the greatest of American alienists, Abraham 
Jacobi, one of our most eminent and distinguished alienists, 
and Dr. Walter H. Conley, of New York, a physician in charge 
at Blackwell's Island, New York, where numerous drug cases 
are treated and cured. 

The testimony of Dr Lichtenstein developed one of the great 
sensations of the trial. Mme. Victorica, after her alleged arrest, 
passed into the custody and control of officials of the United 
States Government. It has been the policy of the American 
people, during the past two decades, to put an end to the drug 
traffic which of late has assumed large proportions, one official 
recently estimating that in the United States alone there are 
at least 1,000,000 drug addicts, or one in every hundred of 
our population. To rid the nation of such a scourge would be 
obviously a boon to mankind, yet the officials in charge of Vic- 
torica catered to her habit, and according to her own admis- 
sions, actually fed her morphine for almost a year at the rate 
of two grains a day. Just why this was done is convincingly 
answered by Dr. Lichtenstein, who swore that in the City Prison 



298 My Political Trial and Experiences 

he has never known any case where a drug addict under con- 
trol could not be gotten off the drug in three weeks at the 
most. Dr. Lichtenstein did not hesitate to characterize the con- 
duct of the Government's officials as "unprofessional." I 
shall go farther and say that the Government's officials were 
under orders, and that those who issued the orders actually 
violated the spirit, if not the letter, of the very laws they were 
sworn to enforce. They certainly opposed the policy of the 
American people, designed to destroy an illicit traffic which 
makes lunatics and criminals of human beings, consigning them 
to fearful tortures and early graves. They have scandalized 
the American people and their policies, to say nothing of the 
smirch upon American justice created by the irresistible con- 
clusion that must be made, and which was argued to the jury, 
that the reason they fed Victorica drugs was to control her, 
to suborn her, in order to do — what? To deprive Ireland of 
her freedom and America of that honor America should ever 
boast of, the loyalty and devotion of men of Irish blood to the 
ideals which I hope will ever be the mainspring of America's 
national life. Let Dr. Lichtenstein characterize the credibility 
of Madame Victorica, and at the same time expose the scandal 
surroimding her pernicious practices. 

Another strange and curious incident in connection with 
Victorica was the testimony of Felix M. Brecher, who, when 
called to the stand as a Government witness to prove that 
Victorica came to America on the Qiristianaf jord in January, 
1917, by a statement that as a passenger he saw and remem- 
bered her, testified, when presented with her picture, a most 
striking likeness, that "the woman in the picture was not the 
person." Those in the court room laughed, causing the Judge 
to rap for order, the witness was withdrawn. Later, Brecher, 
was recalled and changed his testimony, swearing that after 
seeing Victorica in Mr. Osborne's office, he believed she was 
the woman. The circumstances of his meeting the woman in 
the privacy of the prosecutor's office, instead of conducting 
an identification in open court, coupled with certain incidents 
surrounding it, attested by a spectator who saw them, and ac- 



Mme. Victorica Shocks Jurors 299 

companied by the fact that in open court Mr. Osborne stated 
Brecher had spoken to Victorica, while Brecher swore he had 
not, cast a strange and weird aspect over the whole proceeding, 
which might lead an observer to conclude that the Government 
was so groggy that it had lost control of its own witnesses. 

A very important sidelight upon Victorica's testimony is 
furnished by the evidence of Stephen W. Johnson, one of the 
men who made soap-box oratory famous at the street meet- 
ings held at 37th Street and Broadway, New York, during the 
Summer of 1917, when the Vigilantes, led by Cleveland Mofifet, 
endeavored to break them up. Mr. Johnson testified that in 
July, 1917, Victorica did not even know Willard J. Robinson, 
whom she swore she sent to Holland on a mission only three 
or four months before. She asked Mr. Johnson who he was, 
brought Mr. Johnson to luncheon, and endeavored to solicit 
from him information about Irish-American leaders. 

Perhaps the greatest breakdown of Victorica occurred when 
she fixed the month of September as the time I met her in Long 
Beach, when I was in the Adirondacks three hundred miles 
away. This is referred to elsewhere in this volume. Every 
effort of the Government to corroborate her was successfully 
destroyed. 



VII 
A DISCREDITED CHIEF OF POLICE. 

While acquainting the reader with Mesdames Victorica and 
Gonzales, I should be remiss were I to pass by in silence the 
perjury of Aubrey Pettit, the erstwhile Chief of Police of 
Long Beach. A witness was needed by the Government to 
corroborate Victorica. Aubrey Pettit was selected for the work. 
As Chief of Police of Long Beach, he would be the most likely 
resident of that resort to have observed a man in company 
with Victorica at Long Beach during the Summer of 1917. 
Pettit is still living and I shall refrain from any discussion 
of investigations I caused to be conducted about him at Long 
Beach, but suffice to say that, while he was in charge of the 
police, gambling and other vices, which could not exist with- 
out his knowledge and acquiescence were rampant in that place. 

Of all the witnesses who took the stand against me, Pettit 
made the best appearance. Over six feet tall, with a solemn face, 
and excellent deportment, he created a fine impression upon 
his direct examination. Perhaps I was the only man who knew 
whether his testimony was true or false. A lawyer conducting 
a defense may have faith in the truthfulness of his client and 
believe him when he accuses a witness of falsehood, yet it is 
the defendant himself who has actual knowledge of the truth 
in such a case. I do not place any blame upon H. Snowden 
Marshall or James W. Osborne or Benjamin Matthews or 
James C. Cafifey for calling Aubrey Pettit, except in this, that 
when they sat in Court and observed for themselves the per- 
jury of their witnesses, they should have repudiated it and 
told the Court frankly, "The Government has been deceived" 
and moved my acquittal, just as their confrere, Mr. France, 
in Brooklyn, did in the first treason case of the European War. 
Everybody understands what "frame-ups" take place in the 
Secret Service, the non-professional end of the Department of 

300 



A Discr€(fited Chief of Police 301 

Justice. The cases are prepared there and handed over to the 
attorneys for trial. When perjury develops, the District At- 
torney, representing the great, just American people, should 
immediately clear the people from its taint ; otherwise they will 
rid themselves of public officials who ask juries for verdicts 
based upon perjured testimony. 

As a lawyer, James W. Osborne conducted my prosecution 
with dignity and respect. His associate, H. Snowden Marshall, 
showed animus. While Mr. Osborne showed zeal he never 
displayed prejudice. His only failure consisted in not repudiat- 
ing the perjury of his witnesses, for which I believe he was in 
no way responsible. If he had done so, he would have struck 
a tremendous blow for the vindication of American justice; 
he would have done what the jury later did. Why did not 
Mr. Osborne do it? Because of the policy of his superiors. 
The spirit of Thomas W. Gregory, who resigned during my 
trial, hung over the case from beginning to end. During the 
deliberations of the jury, Mr. Osborne purchased a ticket 
from Miss Bessie McCarthy, a young lady spectator at the 
trial, to help the Irish cause. Miss McCarthy had admirable 
courage to ask him, but Mr. Osborne had equally as admirable 
tact to recognize the irony of the request. My brother, Arthur 
in his summing up, paid a tribute to Mr. Osborne, when he 
said: "Mr. Osborne is paid to prosecute these defendants. I 
honor him for the performance of his duty, but H. Snowden 
Marshall has volunteered to widow a wife and orphan four 
little children." 

Aubrey Pettit said that he had seen me once at Long Beach, 
accompanied by Victorica and Willard J. Robinson. On cross- 
examination, he said he had seen Robinson several times, 
knew him well, had talked with him, and saw him in the lobby 
of the Long Beach Hotel on a settee, conversing with Victorica 
several times. Pettit became a pitiable spectacle, when, after 
a grilling cross-examination, he finally declared that Willard J. 
Robinson had a moustache, collapsing completely when pre- 
sented with Robinson's picture, and asked to find the mous- 
tache. Robinson never wore a moustache. Another sample of his 



302 My Political Trial and Experiences 

mendacity was his testimony that when he saw me in the Sum- 
mer of 1917 — either during July or August — I wore a black 
derby hat, a rather unusual apparel for New York during those 
torrid months. The courtroom roared with laughter and the 
newspapers featured the "slip" as a good story. Pettit was 
completely discredited, a juror informing me that they threw 
out his entire testimony, believing he had testified falsely. 
Some excerpts from his cross-examination are to be found here. 

Cross Examination by Mr. Jeremiah A. O'Leary — Q. Mr. 
Pettit, you say you knew me by sight ? A. By sight ; that is all. 
I don't know your name yet. 

Q. You are sure you don't know my name yet? A. I have 
never been introduced to you. I have heard you called O'Leary, 
in the court room here yesterday. 

Q. Of course, you must remember the details about these 
facts that you have testified to Mr. Pettit. A. Certainly. 

Q. Do I understand your testimony to state that you saw 
me with this woman who testified yesterday, on the board walk 
at Long Beach? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Walking up and down the board walk? A. No, sir. 

Q. At the time you say you saw me with this woman, you 
say your were cooperating with the Naval Intelligence Bureau ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And you had been instructed to keep watch on all new- 
comers; is that right? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Was there anything suspicious about the actions of the 
man you say was If A. Not exactly. 

Q. How was he dressed? A. About the same as you are 
now. 

Q. Well, this was in the summer of 1917? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And you say I wore clothes the same as I have now ? A. 
The same style. 

Q. Dark clothes? A. No, I did not say so. 

Q. What color, Mr. Pettit? A. Light colored clothes, with a 
derby hat. 

Q. You say I wore a derby hat, in the summer of 1917? A. 
Yes, sir. 



A Discredited Chief of Police 303 

Q. Did I have patent leather shoes ? A. I don't know. 

Q. What kind of shoes did I wear? A. I don't know. 

Q. Now, you were watching for the Navy Intelligence Bu- 
reau? A. Yes. 

Q. You were watching newcomers ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. The country was at war? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And you were watching this woman ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you make any report of that incident f A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you make it in writing ? A. No, sir. 

Q. With regard to the man you say was Robinson, how was 
he dressed? A. Different at different times. I saw him in a 
bathing suit. 

Q. Don't you know, Mr. Pettit, you are stating a falsehood 
under oath when you say you saw Robinson in a bathing suit 
at Long Beach? A. No. 

Q. Don't you know he never went in bathing at Long Beach 
in his life? A. No, sir. 

Q. How many times did you see that man Robinson in a 
bathing suit at Long Beach? A. Probably once or twice. 

Q. Will you please read back the record and see what the 
answer was the other time? 

The Court — "I saw him once in a bathing suit." That was 
the first answer. 

Q. Once. Now, let us see. Was he in bathing with Madame 
Victorica ? A. No. 

Q. Who was he in bathing with? A. When I saw him he 
was alone. 

Q. What bathing house was he around? A. I did not ask 
him. 

Q. Was it around the Hotel Nassau ? A. Yes, sir ; in front 
of the Nassau Hotel, 

Q. What time of the day? A. Afternoon. 

Q. In what month? A. In the summer of 1917. 

Q. Was it in the month of June ? A. I won't say. 

Q. Will you swear it was not? A. No. 

Q. Will you swear it was not about the 15th of June? A. 
I won't say. 



304 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. How about the month of August? A. I won't say. 

Q. How about the month of September? A. I said, the 
Summer of 1917. 

Q. But you had seen him with this woman whom you had 
observed? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you report that to the Navy Intelligence Bureau? A. 
/ think they were with me. 

Q. You think they with with youf A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You are under oath, Mr. Pettit. A. I know it. 

Q. You have been a chief of police of Long Beach ? A. Yes. 

Q. You have been a witness before, haven't youf A. No. 

Q. Never on the stand before. A. Not as I remember. I 
might have been a couple of times. 

Q. Do you mean to say that you, the chief of police, co- 
operating with the Naval Intelligence Bureau, after having 
observed what one man wore, who was with a woman you 
suspected, did you not observe what the other man wore ? Yes 
or no. A. I did not get your question. It is too long. 

Q. You are intelligent, Mr. Pettit. That is quite evident. 
A. I did not take particular notice of Robinson, because he 
was there so much. 

Q. He was there so much ? A. Yes. 

Q. With Madame Vicioricaf A. Yes. 

Q. How many times, now, Mr. Pettit? A. I saw him four 
or five times. 

Q. Now, then, since he was there so many times, don't you 
think you ought to be in a better position to know what kind 
of a hat he wore? A. No. 

Q. Don't you think that when one man sees another man 
many tim,es that he is in a better position to say what kind of 
clothes he wears than in a case of a man he sees only once or 
twice? A. No. 

Q. You were a police officer ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And out beyond the hotel was the ocean? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. On which American warships were sailing ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. On which American troop ships were going to France? 
A. Yes, sir. 



A Discredited Chief of Police 305 

Q. And you were watching this place to prevent anything 
occurring at this place that might interfere with the passage 
of those ships, weren't you? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Long Beach, Mr. Pettit, was a very particular spot, 
with that idea in mind, wasn't it? A, Very particular. 

Q. From Long Beach you could see the ships pass out from 
Sandy Hook, couldn't you ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And, therefore, you knew that you were assuming a 
great and grave responsibility in watching and observing 
strange and suspicious people who came to that resort, didn't 
you? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Now, then, under such circumstances, this woman having 
been under observation and suspicion, you say you did not 
take any kind of notice of the kind of hat or cap or straw hat 
or derby that Mr. Robinson wore? A. No, I did not take 
particular notice. 

Q. How many times will you swear you saw Mr. Robinson 
in bathing there? A. I said once. 

Q. Didn't you say, a moment ago, twice? A. No, sir. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — Read that record. 

The Court — ^VVhat he said the first time was "once," and 
then he said "once or twice." 

Q. Just a moment ago you said "once or twice." A. Prob- 
ably, I said "once," I think, when you asked me. 

Q. You know it is a serious case? A. I have an idea so. 

Q. Well, then, under those circumstances, don't you think 
you ought to be a little bit careful in your testimony as to the 
number of times you say you saw one of these men in bathing 
at Long Beach? A. I am very careful. I said once or twice, 
once. 

Q. Didn't you a moment ago, in answer to my question, say 
that when you were asked about Robinson being in bathing 
at Long Beach, you testified once? A. Once or twice. 

Q. Now, then, is it not a fact you were asked "Did you say 
'once or twice,' " and did you answer "No." A. No, I don't 
think I did. I said once or twice. 



306 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Mr. Pettit, let us see if we can get our minds down 
to what happened here in court before our own eyes. A. All 
right. 

Q. Weren't you a moment ago asked how many times you 
saw this man in bathing, and you answered "once" ? A. Yes. 

Q. Then later on you were asked the same question, and 
you said "once or twice." A. Yes. 

Q. Then, later on, when you were asked the question again, 
how many times you saw him, you said again "once." In other 
words, you testified twice he was there once, and once that he 
was there once or twice ; isn't that right ? A. I don't think so. 

Q. And then weren't you asked, at a later moment, didn't 
you testify previously that this man was there once or twice, and 
didn't you say "No." A. I don't think I did. 

Q. Did you ever see Colonel Felder at Long Beach f A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. Don't you know Colonel Felder was never at Long Beach 
in his life? A. No, I don't know it. 

Q. When did you see him at Long Beach ? A. I won't say 
when. 

Mr. Felder — At what place in Long Beach ? 

Q. When did you see Colonel Felder there? A. I won't say 
positively. 

Q. Is all your testimony you have given heretofore as true 
as your testimony that you saw Colonel Felder at Long Beach ? 
Yes or no. A. The question is too long; I can not answer it. 

Q. You say that question is too long? A. Yes. 

Q. I will put it to you again. I will try and make it very 
simple. Is all your testimony that you have given here on the 
stand about Mr, Robinson and about myself, as true as your 
testimony that you saw Colonel Thomas B. Felder at Long 
Beach? A. No. 

Q. Now, Mr. Pettit, you said you made a report to the Naval 
Intelligence Bureau about Mr. Robinson and I being in com- 
pany with this woman? A. No, I didn't say so. You didn't ask 



A Discredited Chief of Police 307 

Q. Didn't you swear a few minutes ago, that you reported 
the matter, but that you didn't report it in writing ? Yes or no. 
A. I didn't mention any names. 

(Note hoTV the witness avoided a direct answer.) 

Q. Mr. Pettit, are you here to testify to the truth or are 
you here committing perjury? Yes or no. A. I am here to 
testify to the truth, 

Q Now, Mr. Pettit, you are smiling at Mr. Osborne, I see. 
A. Not particularly, no. 

Q. Don't you know, Mr. Pettit, that Mr. Osborne made a 
remark, and you looked down and smiled at him? A. I didn't 
hear what he said. 

Q. Now, Mr, Pettit, that is something that just happened 
before the jury. Don't you know you looked down at Mr. 
Osborne and smiled at him? A. I was looking at him when 
I smiled. 

(A clear contradiction.) 

Q. A moment ago you said you didn't, didn't you? A, No; 
I said I didn't hear what he said, 

Q, Now, Mr. Pettit, we have it, then, that in your previous 
cross examination you were asked whether you made a report 
of this matter to the Naval Intelligence, and you stated that 
you made a report, but that you didn't make it in writing. A. 
/ used the telephone. 

(A new detail supplied.) 

Q. Mr. Pettit, a few minutes ago on your cross examina- 
tion, weren't you asked the question "Did you make a report 
of this matter to th^ Naval Intelligence Department," and 
didn't you say "Yes." A. Yes. 

Q. And then weren't you asked the question following: 
"Did you make the report in writing," and didn't you say 
"No." A. Yes 

Q. Now, then, just a moment ago you stated, did you not, 
that you did not report the matter to the Naval Intelligence 
Bureau ? A, No, I didn't say so. I said I didn't give any namesj 
because I didn't know any names. I used the telephone to 
Bath Beach, to the Naval Intelligence Bureau. 



308 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q Now, these were three suspicious people you were watch- 
ing, Mr. Pettit, weren't theyf A. Why, I don't think so. 

(Later the witness contradicted this statement flatly.) 

Q. Didn't you testify, and didn't you intend to testify, in 
your direct examination and in your previous cross examina- 
tion, that you took particular notice of this woman and the 
people who saw her, because it was your duty, as you say, to 
watch newcomers at Long Beach? Didn't you say that? A. 
I said I reported newcomers to the Naval Intelligence Bureau, 
and they watched them. 

Q. Didn't you say that you also watched them? A. Yes; the 
best that I could. 

Q. How long did these people stand in front of the Long 
Beach Hotel? A. I don't know. 

Q. Do you now say there were Naval Intelligence people 
watching those people at that time? A. I said I didn't know. 

Q. Now, then, you don't know, then, at that time whether 
there were any Naval Intelligence people watching these people, 
do you? A. I don't know, not positively. 

Q. Not knowing that at that time, you didn't take any further 
notice of them? A. I said I didn't follow them. 

Q. Now, the first time you saw Robinson, he was on a 
settee with Madame Victorica ? A. Yes. 

Q. The second time you saw him, you say you passed the 
time of day, and it was in the evening? A. Yes. 

Q. And Madam Victorica was not there? A. Not there, 
not at that time. 

Q. Now, another time was when you say you saw this man 
Robinson and this Madam Victorica and myself leaving the 
hotel together? A. Yes. 

Q. Another time was when you say you sayv this man 
Robinson in bathing? A, The one time I saw Madam Vic- 
torica and Robinson on the settee, that is the same time I 
saw you coming out with them later, 

Q. Are you sure about that? A. Yes, that is what I say. 

Q. Now, Mr. Pettit, the third time, which is the second time 
you saw them on the settee together, what time of the day 



A Discredited Chief of Police 309 

was that? A. I think it was in the afternoon. I won't say 
for sure. * 

Q. That was the time you say you saw Robinson, Mme. 
Victorica and myself coming out of the hotel together? A. 
No, the first time I saw Robinson was when he was sitting on 
the settee in the hall of the Hotel Nassau, and later I saw 
you coming out with him. 

Q. I am speaking about the third time, Mr. Pettit, which 
would be the second time you saw him on the settee. A. Yes, 
sir ; that is right. 

Q. What time of the day was that? A. I don't know. 

Q. Were you in uniform or out of uniform? A. I really 
don't know that. Probably out of uniform. 

Q. Was there anybody with you at the time? A. No. 

Q. Did you talk to anybody in the lobby? A. I might have 
spoken to some of the clerks. i 

Q. Did you see anybody you knew there ? A. In the hotel ? 

Q. Yes. A. Oh, yes. 

Q. At this time? A. Yes. 

Q. You saw these two people on a settee in the lobby that 
you had under observation? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you talk to anybody about it? A. No. 

Q. Did you talk to any of the hotel clerks about it? A. No. 

Q. You saw these two people that you had under observa- 
tion, that you were suspicious of, and you did not talk to 
anybody about it? A. No. 

Q. How long did you observe them? A. I stayed around 
a while, at different times-; I stayed various times. 

Q. On that occasion how long did you observe them to- 
gether? A. Oh, probably fifteen minutes. 

Q. This lobby was a place where people lounged around? 
A. There are writing desks in there, and settees. 

Q. And it is a place where I understood you to say there 
was an office? A. Yes. 

Q. There were clerks there? A. The clerks were inside. 

Q. There were employes of the hotel going back and forth 
all the time ? A. Yes. 



310 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. And you observed them for fifteen minutes there, and 
did not pass any remark to anybody in the lobby ? A. No. 

Q. Where were they seated the second time? A. Right by 
the elevator. 

Q. About the same place ? A. About the same place. There 
is a round settee in the middle of the hall. 

Q. Where did you stand when you observed them ? A. Right 
by the office. 

Q. Were you standing there all the time during those fifteen 
minutes? A. Probably so. 

Q. Were the faces of these people toward you or away 
from you? A. Sidewise. 

Q. You say that on a previous occasion you had already 
spoken to Robinson and passed the time of day ? A. Yes. 

Q. And you say also that Robinson knew you? A. Yes. 

Q. And you were the chief of police of Long Beach? A. Yes. 

Q. And this man was engaged, as stated here, in dangerous 
undertakings, and you say he sat there, knowing you, and talked 
to that woman for fifteen minutes? A. Yes. 

Q. Did he act suspiciously? A. No. 

Q. Did he act nervously? A. No, sir. 

Q. What kind of clothes did he wear? A. A dark suit. 

Q. Was he there on that second occasion when you got there 
or did you follow him in the hotel f A. He was walking up 
and down when I went in. 

Q. Do you say that this womcm met him then? A. Yes; she 
came down on the elevator. 

Q. Was anybody with her? A. No. 

Q. They then went and sat down on the settee? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you Irnve them there when you went away? A. 
Mme. de Victorica took the elevator upstairs. 

Q. And then, according to that, she came while you were 
there and she went away while you were there? A. Yes. 

Q. And did this man go away then? A. Yes, I think he did. 

Q. When he went away, did you follow him out of the hotel ? 
A. No. 

Q. Did you pass the time of day on the way out? A. No. 



A Discredited Chief of Police 311 

Q. You were standing by the desk ? A. Standing by the desk. 

Q. He had to pass you to go out ? A. Quite some distance 
away. 

Q. You were in plain view there? A. Yes. 

Q. You were watching him? A. No, not particularly. I 
knew he was there. 

Q. Did this man at that time have a mustache or was he 
clean shaven f A. Mustache. 

Q. Don't you know Willard Robinson never wore a mus- 
tache in his life? A. No. 

(Willard J. Robinson never wore a mustache In his life. This testimony 
created a sensation becavise Pettit was to be a star witness against Robinson.) 

Q. Now, Mr. Pettit, when you came into this court room, 
you picked me out as the second man that you say you saw 
down at Long Be^ch. A. Yes. 

Q. How did you know before you came here, since you never 
identified me before, that the man you saw was Jeremiah 
O'Learyf A. I don't know yet. I don't know your name. 
' Q. How did you know at the time you were subpoenaed, at 
the time you were questioned by Mr. Borchard, how did you 
know that the man they were talking about and the man they 
were after was the man who was up on trial here today f A. 
They showed me pictures of you. 

Q. Ah! They had pictures in their pockets, did they? A. 
Yes. 

Q. Who shovved you the picture? A. I don't remember. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — I ask the government to produce 
that picture. 

Mr. Osborne — If you will identify which particular one it is, 
Mr. O'Leary, we will produce it. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — You have lots of them. Produce 
them. 

Mr. Osborne — I have not one of them. If you will identify 
the picture, I will get it for you. 

Q. Is all your testimony, Mr. Pettit, as true as your testi- 
mony that Willard J. Robinson wore a mustache? A. No. 

Q. Don't you know that your testimony is false? A. No. 



312 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. What kind of a photograph was it that you were shown ? 
When was it, in the month of April, 1918? A. I don't know. 

Q. Won't you tell us now when it was shown to you ? A. No, 
I don't know. 

Q. Don't you remember? A, No. If I remembered, I 
would tell you. 

Q. It was not until the month of April that the matter was 
first broached to you, was it ? A. Around that time. 

Q. Was there a photograph of Willard J. Robinson shown 
to you, too? A. I believe there was. 

Q. Was there a mustache on it? A. That I don't remember. 

Q. Don't you know there was notf A. No. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — Has the government got that photo- 
graph ? 

Mr. Osborne — I don't know. I will send out for it. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — I ask the government to produce 
the photographs of Willard J. Robinson — all the photographs 
they have in their possession, and of myself. 

Mr. Osborne — I have sent for your photographs. 

Q. Is Willard J. Robinson light or dark? A, I should call 
him medium. 

Q. How do you refer to me? Am I light or dark? A. 
Medium. You have dark hair. 

Q. And how do you describe Juror No. 12? Is he light 
or dark ? A. I think he is medium, dark hair. 

Q. What was the color of Mr. Robinson's mustache? A. 
I don't know. 

Q. What kind of a mustache did I wear? A. I don't know. 

(The witness would not commit himself on whether or not I wore a 
mustache.) 

Q. Now, then, the man you saw with this woman wore a 
mustache, according to your testimony, didn't he? A. I didn't 
say so. 

Q. You now say that the man you saw did not have a mus- 
tache? A. You say the man I saw with the woman. 

Q. You testified a moment ago that Willard J. Robinson 
had a mustache, and the man you spoke to had a mustache. 
A. Yes. 



A Discredited Chief of Police 313 

Q. Now, then, if Willard J. Robinson did not have a mus- 
tache at that time, then he was not the man you saw? A. No. 

Mr. O'Leary — That is all. 

Mr. Felder — If your Honor please, with, the permission of 
the Court, I want to ask just a question or two. 

By Mr. Felder — Q. What time in 1917 was it you saw me 
at Long Beach? A. I did not say in 1917 it was that I saw 
you there. 

Q. What year was it? A. I did not say any year. 

O. You said you saw me there. A. I said I thought I saw 
you there. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — Oh, no, you said you saw him there. 

Q. You said you saw me there. A. Yes. 

Q. You were not looking out for people except in the year 
1917, were you? A. Why didn't I? I was there from 1915. 

Q. Do you remember whether I came down in an automo- 
bile or on the train? A. No. 

Q. Where was I when you saw me? A. I don't know. 

Q. Why do you think you saw me there? A. Because I 
think I saw you there. 

Q. Are you as positive about that as that you saw Jeremiah 
O'Leary there? A. Oh, no; I am not so positive I saw you 
as I am I saw Jeremiah O'Leary. 

Q. You stated a few moments ago you saw me? A. Yes. 

Q. But you don't know what year? A. No. 

Q. Did I have a mustache? A. No, I don't remember that. 

Q. And you don't remember whether it was 1917, 1918, or 
1916? A. No. 

Q. But you are quite positive you saw me there during one 
of those years ? A. Why, yes. 

By Arthur T. O'Leary — Q. Were you watching this Madame 
Victorica particularly ? A. After I got word from the Depart- 
ment of Justice. 

Q. When was that? A. I won't be sure about that. 
Q. What is your best recollection of the date ? A. In June, 
1917. 



314 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q^ Who gave you that information from the Department of 
Justice? A. One of their agents, 

Q. Who was it ? A. I don't know. 

Q. Did that come by telephone? A. Yes. 

Q. Then these two men, Mr. O'Leary and Mr. Robinson, 
were the only people outside of that other woman who was 
with her at any time you saw her? A. That I saw her, yes. 
She might have had other people with her when I didn't 
see her. 

Q. I am asking about what you saw. A. Yes. 

Q. Then your testimony is that the only persons you ever 
saw with Victorica at Long Beach was this woman and these 
two men, O'Leary and Robinson? A. Oh, no. 

Q. Oh, you saw other people with her? A. Yes. 

Q. What other people ? A. I don't know his name. 

Q. You don't know his name? A. No. 

Q. Was it a man? A. Yes. 

Q. Describe him. A. He is a man about my height, a little 
more hair than I have, with a sandy goatee. 

Q. When did you see that man with her? A. In the summer 
of 1917. 

Q. What time in the summer? A. In the Summer; either 
July or August. 

Q. How tall was this man ? A. I think as tall as I am. 

(This waa intended as a description of John T. Ryan, who is not over 5 
feet 10 inches tall.) 

Q. How tall are you ? A. I am six feet. 

Q. Was this man with these other two men, with Victorica 
when you saw them ? A. No ; she used to meet him at the train, 
the other m.an. 

Q. What other people did you ever see with Victorica out- 
side of those you mentioned ? A I don't think I saw her with 
anybody else. 

Q. You never saw her with anybody else? A. No. 

Q. At any time? A. No, I don't think I have. 

Q. And, as I understand your testimony, that last state- 
ment applies to all the time she was at Long Beach? A. Yes. 



' , A Discredited Chief of Police 315 

Q. All the time she was at Long Beach you never saw her 
with anybody except a young woman? A. Yes. 

Q. This man that was as tall as you are, whom she used to 
meet at the train, as you say ? A. Yes, every Sunday morning. 

Q. And Mr. O'Leary and Robinson, that is all ? A. That is 
all I remember. 

Q. There was nobody else ? A. I don't think so. 

Q. Do you know Mr. Jenser? A. No, I would not know 
him if I saw him. 

Q. Or Mrs. Jenser? A. No. I had several communica- 
tions over the telephone with him. 

Q. Now, at the time you were observing Madam Victorica 
and O'Leary and Robinson, as you say, you were rather sus- 
picious of them, weren't you? A. Yes. 

Q. You were quite suspicious of the trio, of the three? A. 
Not of the men. / was suspicious of her. 

Q. You were suspicious of her? A. Yes. 

Q. And that caused you to he suspicious of anybody she 
was with, did it not? A. Sure. 

Q. So that you were suspicious about these two men whom 
you described as O'Leary and Robinson, when you saw them 
with Victorica? A. Yes. 

Q. That is your testimony? A. Yes. 

Q. You are sure of that? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, Mr. Pettit, didn't you state on your cross examina- 
tion by Mr. O'Leary that you did not think they were sus- 
picious? A. I don't know whether I did or not. 

Q. Will you swear you did not? A. No. 

(A perjurer should have a better memory because previously the wltnesa 
stated as indicated.) 

Q. Then you may have said you did not think they were 
suspicious? A. / might have said I did not think that they 
were suspicious. 

Q. How do you square that with the statement to me a mo- 
m£nt ago that you did think they were suspiciotis? 

Mr. Osborne : He didn't say he thought they were suspicious. 

A. They might be suspicious. They were not as suspicious 
as she was. 



316 My Political Trial and Experiences 

O. / didn't ask you about any degrees of suspicion. I asked 
you as to your testimony here today. In response to my ques- 
tions you stated that you were suspicious of the men you de- 
scribed as O'Leary and Robinson when they were with Vic- 
torica at Long Beach. That was your testimony, wasn't it? 
A. / don't know. If you say so, it is. 

(Note the utter helplessness of the witness when snared.) 

Q. / am not saying so. I am asking you to say so. A. I 
don't know. I don't remember now. 

Q. You don't remember your testimony f A. No, I don't 
remember whether I said they were suspicious or not. 

Q. What is the fact? Were you suspicious of them or were 
you not suspicious of themf I am just asking you the fact. 

A. / was, to a certain extent, yes. 

Q. Then your testimony is that you were suspicious of them? 
A. To a certain extent. 

Q. Now I ask you again, Mr. Pettit, if you did not state 
previously here this morning that when you saw the men de- 
scribed as O'Leary and Robinson and the woman Victorica 
come out of the hotel together and walk east, that you did not 
think they were suspicious? I ask you if you did not say that 
this morning on your cross examination? A. Did I say that? 
Yes. 

Q. Then you did say that? A. Yes. 

Q. So that this morning, in response to questions, you stated 
you did not think they were suspicious, didn't you? A. I think 
I did. 

(The witness now admits he did state they were suspicious.) 

Q. And now, later, a few moments ago, in response to my 
question, your testimony is that you did think they were sus- 
picious? A. To a certain extent; enough so that I reported 
that to the Naval Intelligence Bureau. 

Q. Which statement is true, your prior statement that you 
did not think they were suspicious, or your later statement that 
you did think they were suspicious? A. I did not say both 
times. I said they were suspicious enough so I reported them 
to the Naval Burecm. 



A Discredited Chief of Police 317 

Q. Didn't you admit to me, a few moments ago that in your 
cross examination this morning you stated that you did not 
think the three persons I named were suspicious, as they walked 
out of the hotel? A. Did I say that this morning? 

Q. / am asking you if you did not tell to me, a moment ago, 
that you did say that? A. Yes. 

Q. Then you did say that? A. Yes. 

Q. Then you did say, early this morning, that you did not 
regard those persons with suspicion, did you not? A. Not 
particularly, I said. That is the answer I gave this morning. 

Q. Then your recollection is that the answer you gave this 
morning was that you did not regard them with particular sus- 
picion? Is that your testimony now? A. Yes, that is right. 

By Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary: Just look at that, Mr. Pettit 
(handing Mr. Robinson's photograph to witness). Can you 
find a mustache on that face ? A. No. 

Q. Look at that face (referring to Mr. O'Leary's photo- 
graph). There is no mustache on it there, is there? A. No. 

Q. The picture in the paper is my picture ? A. This is your 
picture. 

Q. The picture on cardboard is the picture of the man you 
say was Robinson? A. Yes, sir. 

(While "chief of police" Pettit was being cross examined 
he showed signs of collapse. Observing this, I asked him if 
he would like a glass of water. He eagerly replied, "Yes." 
As I was handing him the water he stood up and as he did 
so, his knees sank under him causing him to fall into my hands. 
I caught him, placed him back in the witness chair, remarking-. 
"Don't collapse, I am not through with you yet." In appear- 
ance Pettit looked like a man who would impress a jury. Had 
I not cross examined him severely his testimony might have 
been accepted as true.) 



VIII 

FELIX M. BRECHER BREAKS DOWN. 

Felix M. Brecher was called by the government to prove that 
Mme. Victorica came to the United States on the "Christiana- 
fjord" in January, 1917. On the stand the witness was shown 
a picture of the woman. He looked at it carefully and al- 
though an excellent likeness, he said the woman who came over 
was not Victorica. This answer caused a sensation in the court- 
room. The government attorneys were dumfounded. The 
witness was withdrawn at once and ordered to wait. Just 
why a photograph was used instead of the woman in person can 
be readily imagined by the reader. The madame was a drug 
addict and drug addicts are unreliable. It would be quite 
dangerous therefore, to have her in court. Her appearance 
might not be good. It would be a hard task to prepare her 
for court and then no one could tell just what she might do. 

So Brecher had to wait. Later, the drug addict was brought 
not to court, but into Mr. Osborne's office, and Brecher was 
requested to go there. Amidst great secrecy he left, and 
surrounded and guarded by Dr. Frederick Bischofif the govern- 
ment chief "sleuth," entered Osborne's office. What happened 
there few know. Whatever did occur, Brecher later appeared 
on the stand and changed his testimony, and although Mr. 
Osborne stated in open court that he, Brecher, had talked 
with Victorica, Brecher who had not heard Osborne's state- 
ment swore he had not talked to her at all. His testimony, 
reproduced verbatim from the record follows : 

Direct Examination by Mr, Osborne: Q. Mr. Brecher, 
what is your business? A. I am a salesman. 

Q. In the year 1917 were you in Europe? A. In 1916; I 
came home in January, 1917. 

Q. What port did you sail from in Europe? A. Bergen, in 
Norway. 

318 



Felix M. Brecher Breaks Down 319 

Q. On what boat? A. I believe it was the Christianafjord. 
It was either the Christianafjord or Bergenf jord, I don't recol- 
lect exactly, 

Q. What line? A. On the Norwegian line. 

Q. And what day did you dock here in New York? A. It 
was January 21st or 22nd; it was on Sunday afternoon, 1917. 

Q. Did you meet a woman on board that boat by the name of 
Victorica? A. Yes. 

Q. Would you recognize a photograph of her if you saw 
it again? A. Yes. 

Q. I show you a photograph marked Government's Exhibit 
102 for identification, and ask you to state as to whether or not 
this is a photograph of the woman that you met? A. (Witness 
examines photograph.) No. 

(Laughter and uproar in Court.) 

Mr. Osborne: Then I will have to ask you to come back. 
I will bring the woman. 

Mr. Arthur O'Leary: Let me see the photograph. 

Mr. Osborne: Will you come back this afternoon at 2 
o'clock ? I will have to send for the woman. 

The Clerk: That is not in evidence (referring to photo- 
graph). 

Mr. Felder : Well, we will want this in right now. Mark it 
as our exhibit. 

(Photograph received in evidence and marked Defendants' 
Exhibit A-62.) 

Mr. Felder: Now, gentlemen, we will ask you to examine 
that (handing photograph to jury). 

Felix M. Brecher, later recalled. Direct Examination by Mr. 
Osborne: Mr. Osborne: Will you stand up, madam, please? 

(Madam Victorica stands up in court room.) 

Mr. Osborne : Sit down again. 

Q. Mr. Brecher, since you were on the stand have you had 
an opportunity of talking to Madame Victorica who has just 
stood up? A. I did not understand the question. 

(Question read.) 



320 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. What do you mean ? A. I have seen Madam Victorica, 
but I have not talked to her. 

Q. Have you looked at her carefully? A, Yes, sir. 

Q. Can you state whether or not that is the woman you met 
on board the ship, on the trip you have described to the jury? 
A. Yes. 

Mr. Osborne : You may examine. 

Mr. Arthur O'Leary: No questions. I move to strike out 
the testimony of this witness upon the grounds stated as 
grounds of objection ; and upon the further ground that the 
testimony of the witness is worthless, has no probative value; 
upon the ground he previously stated very emphatically, when 
shown a very good photograph of Madam Victorica, that she 
was not the woman. 

The Court: Motion denied. 

Mr. Arthur O'Leary: Exception. 

Later — the defense proved that Madame Victorica and wit- 
ness Brecher were brought together in Mr. Osborne's office, 
previous to Brecher's change of testimony. 

After Aubrey Pettit came a soldier named Lynch, a former 
bellboy at the Long Beach Hotel, who admitted that he had 
been specially ordered by General Pershing to proceed from 
France to testify against me at the trial. He admitted finally 
that he had never seen me with Victorica, and although he 
claimed that he had seen me in the company of a man sup- 
posed to be Ryan, who was later seen with Victorica, he ad- 
mitted that I may not have been with this man at all. The 
testimony of this witness had no probative value. Lynch tried 
hard to help the Government. He failed because he was not 
telling the truth. At this point, the prosecution seemed to be 
in a panic, and although it had about fifteen more witnesses 
present in the courtroom, Mr. Marshall and Mr. Osborne held 
an earnest consultation and decided to dismiss the remaining 
witnesses, save Arthur L. Lyons, who had been my managing 
clerk, and Russell Bryan, one of the Secret Service agents, who 
arrested me in the West and brought me to New York. 



Felix M. Brecher Breaks Down 321 

Lyons' testimony was another unfavorable surprise to the 
Government. It clearly favored me, and although the witness 
was in a very difficult position, because of the testimony he 
had given at the trial of my brother, John, he now made it 
very clear that he had been the victim of the most outrageous 
third degree methods ever used in a Court of Justice. Lyons 
testified that he had been held incommunicado for fifteen days, 
contrary to every right of an arrested person, and that he had 
been compelled to sleep on a table, while his wife, the mother of 
his three small children — was threatened with an indictment 
which Mr. Barnes told him had been filed, although, as a mat- 
ter of fact, it had not been filed. Bryan's testimony was brief 
and to the effect that 1 had been arrested on the ranch, had 
readily admitted my identity, and had offered no resistance. 
The Government thereupon rested its case, and the Court de- 
nied all motions of the defense to dismiss the charges. Before 
I take up the defense, I shall interpolate the testimony of 
Charles A. Martin, called by the government in rebuttal. His 
testimony is properly a part of the government's direct case and 
therefore belongs here. 



IX 

THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS. 

One of the most tense and sensational incidents of the trial 
was the cross-examination of Charles A. Martin, a hull in- 
spector from San Francisco. Martin journeyed all the way 
across the Continent to swear that between January 1 and 
January 16, 1917, he had seen me on three occasions in con- 
versation with one "Roediger," an alleged German spy, in a 
ten, twenty and thirty cent restaurant, called the "Mecca," 
on Broadway, between 145th and 146th Streets. This testi- 
mony was vital, because it formed a link to connect me with 
one who apparently was a desperate German spy. If it stood 
I would be convicted unquestionably in the "Bull" case. Con- 
scious of its falsity and of my innocence, I decided to cross- 
examine him. Before he had finished his direct testimony I 
was on my feet with my right hip leaning against the jury rail, 
my arms folded, glaring at him straight in the eye. When 
I arose, I noted that his lips quivered and that unconsciously 
he paled a trifle and looked the other way. Although no one 
in the courtroom observed such slight changes, to me they 
carried assurance of weakness, the consciousness within the 
man that he was deliberately committing perjury, and that 
the man who stood before him knew he was a perjurer. Mr. 
Osborne asked me to "sit down." I answered, "I shall stand 
here and confront this man. He is committing perjury," and 
I remained standing until his direct examination was con- 
cluded. 

Subsequently, when Albert Paul Fricke was placed on trial, 
charged with treason, Martin, despite the fact that his testi- 
mony had been rejected by my jury, and notwithstandir^ the 
grilling I gave him and the unmistakable demonstration that 
he was a perjurer, was called by the Government to testify 
to almost the same facts against Albert Paul Fricke that he 

322 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 323 

had sworn to against me ; that is to say, he was used to con- 
nect Fricke with Roediger by swearing that he had seen 
Roediger and Fricke together on several occasions at the Mecca 
restaurant. At this very time Fricke was convalescing from 
a serious illness at Lakewood, New Jersey, and produced in 
court a hotel register and indisputable proof that such was the 
fact. In charging the jury in the Fricke case Judge Julius 
Mayer said: 

"The defense has proved beyond a demonstrable doubt that 
Martin was mistaken." 

It is a very grave affair for any Government to produce as 
a witness to testify against an American citizen in a treason 
case — one of its own employes — who had been discredited by 
a previous jury and finally is judicially declared by a trial 
judge "beyond a demonstrable doubt" to be "mistaken," which 
was another way of charging that Martin was a perjurer. 
Martin is still at liberty. Martin had an accomplice in his 
perjury; one Abeles, a former proprietor of the Mecca res- 
taurant, who was ready to swear falsely against me. He 
weakened however, when he saw the wretched spectacle Mar- 
tin made of himself on the witness stand. He said my face was 
familiar, but he couldn't say he had seen me with Roediger in 
his restaurant, although Mr. Osborne, in order to disconcert 
me, when I was grilling Martin, said, "I have six waiters to 
corroborate him." This remark was made in the hearing of 
the jury and my counsel. Besides Abeles, a waiter was pro- 
duced who refused to corroborate Martin ; the other five failed 
to materialize except that later on we proved that Dr. Frederick 
Bischof, an American Protective League "detective" had en- 
deavored to spirit several waiters from the courtroom when 
Martin collapsed. They were not called to testify. 

Of Abeles, who testified in the Fricke case to corroborate 
Martin, Judge Mayer declared in his charge to the jury : 

"I do not believe a word that Abeles sai4. You can think 
what you like; he is just to my mind a curious, queer creature, 
who 16 looking for excitement every minute of his life." 

Such are the judicial comments with which I introduce to 



324 My Political Trial and Experiences 

my readers a cross-examination that establishes more than any- 
thing in the case that somebody, some band, some influence, 
was engaged in "framing me up," as a friend had informed me 
"to hang you." The newspapers didn't print any of these 
revelations. The public would be shocked. I leave it to any 
impartial reader to judge if I was not perfectly justified in 
every conclusion I arrived at, that I was being persecuted for 
political revenge, for political reasons too, because England, 
and at that time America, also, needed an Irish "traitor" 
to kill the Irish movement and bury it under the stigma of 
treason forever. I believe I am justified in asserting that Mar- 
tin's advancement in November, 1918, immediately following 
which it is alleged he told his story to the Government, in view 
of what has since occurred, constituted bribery and suborna- 
tion of perjury. It was a shocking scandal. For appearance, 
Martin was cleverly selected. He was an impressive looking 
man. His manner was calmly deliberate. His face was ex- 
pressionless, almost judicial in its cast. His eye was grey, 
cruel and piercing. While testifying, he held his hands and 
feet well together. He artfully simulated pleasantness, smiled 
occasionally, but was cool and deliberate. As a lawyer who 
has had fifteen years experience before the bar, and who has 
cross-examined thousands of witnesses, I consider Martin a 
man specially selected for his appearance and daring. Every 
movement he made was trained, apparently advised, and when 
his crisis came on the stand he kept his head turned away from 
the jury towards his advisers, who sat on the opposite side 
of the (tourt room. I was compelled to admonish him very 
frequently to look at me and at the jury. 

His direct testimony took only a few minutes. He went 
into no details. My work was to break him down. I knew my 
liberty, perhaps my life, depended upon a conclusive demon- 
stration that he was a perjurer. I had very little strength left. 
I prayed for more, but yet I undertook the task which proved 
to be the effort that opened up my prison doors. I had caught 
Aubrey Pettit, who connected me with Victorica. Colonel 
Felder, aided by my brothers, John and Arthur, had trapped 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 325 

the unspeakable Mme Gonzales. Drs. Lichtenstein, Jelliffe, 
Jacobi afid Conley had disposed of Madame Victorica. Martin 
was the last barrier between me and liberty. For the enlight- 
enment of my readers, I quote excerpts from the cross-examina- 
tion. They are to be found in the appendix. On reading Mar- 
tin's cross-examination, the reader should endeavor to under- 
stand that it is not the ordinary cross-examination of the law- 
yer. On the contrary, it is an examination conducted by the 
defendant himself, charged by Martin with being in the Mecca 
restaurant and meeting Roediger, an alleged German spy. It 
is therefore an examination with human interest, one in which 
the accused faced the witness, confronting him, not by standing 
up, as is usually the case, but by a rapid fire of questions which 
could only be inspired by the consciousness of innocence. It 
is all summed up in my own question and Martin's answer: 

"Don't you know, Mr. Martin, that I know whether I was in 
that restaurant? Don't you know you are being questioned 
by a man who knows whether what you are saying is true or 
false?" To this be very sheepishly answered, "Yes." Mar- 
tin's cross-examination in part follows. I regret that space 
forbids its complete publication, but I have set forth sufficient 
to show how completely his testimony was shattered. 

Cross examination by Jeremiah A. O'Leary (Continued) : 

Q, Did you go to Bellevue Hospital last night? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you go through the prison ward? A. Yes, sir. No. 
26. 

Q. Did you find you were mistaken? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You found, didn't you, that the prison ward is composed 
of two rooms? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And you found that the door to the ward where my bed 
and screen were, did not enter into that part of the ward at all, 
didn't you? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. In other words, you found that your diagram, which is 
marked Defendant's Exhibit A-63 in evidence, is wrong? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. Now, how about the bathrobe? A. What about it. 



326 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. How about the bathrobe? Is the bathrobe still white? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. It is? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Please look this way, Mr. Martin. You say the bath- 
robe, to your recollection, is still white ? A. Yes, sir. 

(The witness could not look me In the face nor could he face the Jury.) 

Q. (Speaking to associate at counsel table.) Will you 
please go out to 319 and bring in that bathrobe ? (To witness.) 
Are you color blind? A. No, sir. 

Q. You told us yesterday that by occupation you were a 
navigating officer? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What are his duties? Tell us what he does? 

The Court: Don't be so slow about answering a question 
like that. That relates to your profession. Go ahead. 

(The witness had been answering In a subdued voice and very slowly. He 
was on the verge of collapse at this point.) 

A. Figure out the ship's position by observation of the sun 
and other heavenly bodies ; stand watch on the bridge. 

Q. Is there anything white about that bathrobe (exhibit- 
ing a brown bathrobe to witness) ? A. No, sir. 

(The bathrobe I wore was brown. The witness turned pale as he observed 
his error.) 

Q. The navigating officer is concerned with directions, isn't 
he? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. In other words, your occupation, before you went to 
work for the government, was taken up with the location of 
things? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You were trained in that line? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Despite the fact that you were trained in the location 
of things, you were unable yesterday to recollect the ward 
at Bellevue, or the entrance to the ward where my bed was, 
weren't you ? A. I testified as best my recollection was. 

Q. Did you or did you not state yesterday that your recol- 
lection of the man you saw at 145th Street and Broadway, was 
just as good as your recollection of the layout of things in 
Bellevue? A. Yes. 

Q. Yesterday I went up close to you, I showed you that 
you were wrong in your recollection of things up there in 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 327 

the prison ward. After I showed you that, you still persisted 
that that was your recollection of it, didn't you? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. I described the prison ward for you. I told you it had 
a partition between the convalescent side and the serious ill- 
ness side. I told you that, didn't I? A. Yes. 

Q. The fact that I told you that, did not refresh your recol- 
lection about it? A. Not any. 

Q. I showed you it had two arches, one on one side and 
one on the other ; that they were not doors, they were arches ; 
there were no doors there. You did not recollect that either, 
did you? A. No. 

Q. And did I not tell you, too, that the doors to the prison 
ward did not enter into the side that my bed was in, but into 
the convalescent side? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. My statements to you of what the real conditions were 
when I went up close to you did not cause your mind to recol- 
lect more accurately just what the real conditions were? A. 
Not any. 

Q. Do you remember my asking you this question: If it 
was not possible for you to be mistaken about those things? 
Do you remember that? A. No, I do not remember that. 

Q. And you do not remember the answer you made to that 
question? A. No, sir. 

Q. Do you remember my asking you this question : That 
if you were mistaken about the location of things in the 
prison ward which you saw only two or three or four months 
ago, would not it be possible you were also mistaken about the 
man you say you saw at 145th Street and Broadway? Do 
you remember being asked that question ? A. Yes. 

Q. And you insisting you could not be mistaken about that? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. In other words, you are a man that can be mistaken 
about one thing and cannot be mistaken about another. Is 
that right? A. That is the inference you have drawn. 

Q. I want to get what is in your mind. Is it a fact that 
you are an individual who can be mistaken about one thing 
that happened only recently, and cannot be mistaken about 



328 My Political Trial and Experiences 

another thing that happened over a year or two years ago? 
A. In this particular instance, no. 

Q. You know, if you admitted now that you were mistaken 
about those incidents at 145th Street and Broadway, you would 
be admitting you committed perjury. You know that, don't 
youf A. I am not committing perjury. 

Q. I have asked you this question : Don't you know, if you 
admitted now that you were mistaken about the identity of 
the man you saw at 145th Street and Broadway, you would 
be admitting you committed perjury. You know that? A. 
Why, certainly. 

Q. Don't you ? A. Yes. 

Q. Would you admit you committed perjury? A. No. 

Q. In other words, if you were mistaken about what hap- 
pened at 145th Street and Broadway, you would not admit it 
on the stand, would youf A. I am not mistaken. 

Q. I did not ask you that question. I say, in other words, 
if you in jnour own mind knew that you were mistaken about 
what happened at 145th Street and Broadway, you would not 
admit it, would you? A. Why, certainly. 

Q. You would? A. Yes. 

Q. Didn't you say a moment ago that you would not admit 
that you committed perjury? A. No, I will not admit that I 
have committed perjury. 

Q. Didn't you also say a moment ago in answer to my 
questions that you knew that if you testified now that you 
were mistaken about what happened at 145th Street and 
Broadway, you would be committing perjury? Wasn't that 
question asked and didn't you make that answer? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, then in the face of that question and answer I 
ask you again would you admit that you made a mistake about 
what happened at 145th Street and Broadway? A. If I was 
sure I had made a mistake, I would admit it. 

Q. Even if you had testified before that' you were sure as 
to who the man was ? A. Yes. 

Q. You would admit it on cross-examination? A. If I 
was sure I had made a mistake. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 329 

Q. Don't you know, Mr. Martin — I ask you again — don't 
you know that you committed perjury when you said I was 
up in that restaurant with that man ? A. No. 

Q. You don't know that? A. No. 

(The witness could not look me In the face, nor could he look towards the 
jury. He was pale and could speak only with great effort. His lips were 
parched and quivering.) 

Q. Look down here. I ask you that question again: Don't 
you know you never saw me in that restaurant in your Hfe? 
Don't you know that, Mr, Martin? A. No, sir. 

Q. Now, you said yesterday, didn't you, in answer to a 
question, that your testimony about that identification was as 
accurate as your testimony about the white bathrobe that you 
say I wore? A. I do not remember that. 

Q. Well, I will read it for you : 

"Q. Was I in my civilian clothes ? A. You had a robe on." 

That question was asked you, and you made that answer, 
isn't that true ? A. If you have it there. 

Q. No; I want to know whether you recollect it, because 
you are testifying as to facts. Do you recollect being asked 
that question yesterday and making that answer? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, then, do you recollect being asked this question 
and making this answer: 

"Q. What was the color of that. , A. White." 

Do you recollect that? A. Yes, sir. 

"Q. Mr. Martin, don't you know I did not have a white 
bathrobe on? A. I say you did." 

Do you remember being asked that question and do you 
remember making that answer? A. Yes, sir. 

"Q. You say I did? A. I say you had a white bathrobe on. 

"Q. You guessed at that, didn't you ? A. I did not. 

"Q. You have a distinct recollection that I wore a white 
bathrobe? A. Yes. 

"Q. There is no doubt about that in your mind? A. No. 

"Q. Is that as true as all the evidence you have given 
here today? A. Yes. 

"Q. There is no chance of your being mistaken about that, 
Mr. Martin? A. Not in my own mind." 



330 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Now, Mr. Martin, I ask you again whether you do npt recol- 
lect yesterday having testified to those questions and the 
answers you gave that I have just read? A. Yes. 

Q. Isn't that true? A. Yes. 

Q. You did not leave any room for doubt in your answers 
yesterday that the bathrobe I wore may have been a color 
other than white, did you ? A. Not any. 

Q. You were positive about it? A. Yes. 

Q. You did not hesitate to risk a comparison of that testi- 
mony with your identification, did you? A. Not any. 

Q. You are positive in the same way about the identification 
as you were about the bathrobe? A. Yes. 

Q. Now I ask you again on that point, whether or not 
it is not possible that you were mistaken about the bathrobe? 
A. No. 

Q. It is not. Well, now, if you were presented — Mr. Martin, 
if you were presented with the nurse that was there, with the 
policeman who was in the ward, with the people who saw me on 
or about December 16, 1918, would you still insist that your 
testimony in that respect is correct? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You would? Now then, I will ask you again, is it not 
a fact that the reason you won't change your testimony about 
the bathrobe is that you have testified that your testimony about 
the identification is as positive as your testimony about the 
bathrobe. Isn't that the reason you won't change? A. No. 

Q. Of course, you know, Mr. Martin, that where you 
testify to fixed conditions, such as the shape of this room, such 
as the presence of doors, the location of doors, you know that 
where you make a mistake about the location of fixed things 
that have not been changed, it is always possible to contradict 
you. You know that, don't you? Isn't that true? A. I do not 
understand you. 

Q. I withdraw it, and will put it in another way. Where 
you have testified, as you did yesterday, about the location of 
fixed things, like the prison ward, like the partition, like the 
number of rooms, like the place where the door was located, 
you know that where you testified to such facts and you are 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 331 

mistaken about it, that you can be contradicted by a picture 
of the room and by a presentation of facts that absolutely con- 
tradict you? A. Yes. 

Q. And that is the reason why you changed your testimony 
on it ? A. On what ? 

Q. On the location of things in the prison ward, and on the 
layout of the prison ward. Isn't that the only reason why 
you changed your testimony, because you know we could 
bring here the whole Bellevue Hospital staff to contradict 
you? A. No. 

Q. Well, it is because you went up there yourself? A. Be- 
cause I was ordered to go and look at it. 

Q. That is the reason why you changed your testimony, is 
that right ? A. Yes. 

Q, If you could see a picture of myself as I sat there 
that day, when you looked me over without my knowledge, 
and that picture showed I had a brown bathrobe on, you would 
change that too, in the same way ? A. No. 

Q. In other words, if absolute evidence contradicting you 
was presented that I did not have a white bathrobe on, you 
would not change your testimony? A. No. 

Q. Mr. Martin, isn't it true that the reason you say "no," 
is because you know that in that record you have made the 
identification of the bathrobe as positive as the identification 
of the men you say you saw at 145th Street and Broadway? 
A. No. 

Q. Where were you born? A. Pennsylvania. 

Q. Were you ever convicted of a crime? A. No, sir. 

Q. You testified you were the navigating officer of the 
Steamship Columbia? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Is that an American or British ship ? A. American ship. 

Q. What flag did it fly? A. American flag. 

Q. When did you go to work on that ship? A, March, 1916. 

Q. Where did you work before that and for whom? A. 
American-Hawaiian Steamship Company, 

Q. As a navigating officer? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. On what ship? A. The "Arizona." 



332 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Plying between what ports? A. San Francisco, Seattle, 
Honolulu. Do you want all the ports ? 

Q. Well, it was a Western ship. A. From the West Coast 
of the United States to the East Coast. 

Q. You went down around the Cape? A. Through the 
Panama Canal, through the Straits of Magellan, and around 
Cape Horn. 

Q. When was it you began to work for the American-Ha- 
waiian Steamship Company? A. The first time? 

Q. Well, you worked there several times ? A. Several times, 

Q. When did you first begin to worjc there ? A. I don't re- 
member just now. 

Q. About? A. About 1913, I guess; I am not sure about 
those dates. 

Q. You began to work for the American-Hawaiian Steam- 
ship Company in 1913, is that right, about 1913? A. No, I 
do not know about those dates. 

Q. Well, about; there is no object in this except to test 
your recollection? Is that your best recollection, about 1913? 
A, I can fix it definitely, but not at the present moment. 

Q. What work did you do for the American-Hawaiian 
Steamship Company? A. I was an officer of the Steamer 
"Arizona." 

Q. You continued to work for that company until 1916? 
A. No, sir. 

Q. Well, I understand you had an interval there that you 
did not work for that company. What was that interval? A. 
I was on the "Arizona" about six months. 

Q. That would carry you, say, to about the 1st of January 
1914. Then whom did you work for after that? A. The Pacific 
Mail Steamship Company. 

Q. For how long? A. Six months. 

Q. That would carry us to about the middle of 1914. Whom 
did you work for after that ? A. I went back to the American- 
Hawaiian Company. 

Q. What ship did you work on for the Pacific Mail? A. 
The Steamer "Barraconta." 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 333 

Q. You went back approximately, or about the middle of 
1914, for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. Then you worked for them again until 1916? A. Until 
February, 1916. 

Q. And then you went to work for whom? A. W. R. Grace 
& Company. 

Q, How long did you work for W. R. Grace & Company? 
A. A year. 

Q. Then you went to ivork for whom after that? A. Oh, 
I do not just remember, several small vessels, several vessels 
in and out of San Francisco. 

Q. When you say W. R. Grace & Company, did you refer 
to the steamship "Columbia" ? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, Mr. Martin, we have it that in February, 1916, you 
went to work for W. R. Grace & Company, is that right ? A. 
March, 1916. 

Q. March, 1916, you went to work for W. R. Grace & 
Company on the Steamship "Columbia"? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How long did you work on the "Columbia"? A. One 
year. 

Q. That would carry you to March, 1917? A. Yes. 

Q. Where did you go to work after that? A. I said to 
several small vessels out of San Francisco. 

Q. What were the several small vessels? A. The "Girlie 
Mahoney," for one. 

Q. Go ahead. You don't forget the names of steamers you 
worked on. A. Yes, I worked on so many of them, I cannot 
begin to tell you without thinking of the names. 

Q. What kind of ship was the "Girlie Mahoney"? A. The 
"Girlie Mahoney" was a little steam schooner. 

Q. Where did she ply to and from? A. From San Francisco 
to Point Arena. 

Q. Where is that? A. California. 

Q. How long did you work on her? A. About a month. 

Q. Now, we have you up to March, 1917, when you went 
to work on the "Girlie Mahoney" for a month. That carries 



334 My Political Trial and Experiences 

us to April 1st, 1917. Now what is the next ship you worked 
on? A. U. S. S. "McCullough." 

(Note how the witness recalled the name, after first saying he could not 
remember. His purpose was clearly to conceal he worked (or the government 
— If he could.) 

Q. The United States Steamship McCuUough? A. Yes. 

Q. Where was she stationed? A. San Pedro. 

Q. California? A. Yes. 

Q. What kind of work did you do on her ? A. Officer's duty. 

Q. What officer's duty ? A. Junior officer. 

Q. Who was the Captain of that ship? A. Wiley. 

Q. What was his first name? A. I don't know. 

Q. You knew him as Captain Wiley? A. Yes. 

Q. How long were you on the McCullough? A. A month 
and a half. 

Q. The McCullough was a United States Government ves- 
sel? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. When you went to work on the McCullough, on or 
about April 1st, 1917, you went to work for the United States 
Government? A. Yes. 

Q. Yesterday you told us you did not go to work for the 
United States Government until November, 1918? A. In this 
job. 

Q. Oh, now, Mr. Martin, don't qualify it. A. Oh, yes. 

Q. You were asked yesterday, when you went to work for 
the United States Government, and you told me Novewiber \st, 
1918, didn't you? A, On this job. 

Q. When you were asked a few moments ago to name the 
ships that you worked on by me, and when you stated that 
you could not remember their names, that they were small 
ships, wasn't it your purpose to conceal from this jury if you 
could tiie fact that on April 1st, 1917 you went to work for 
the United States Government ; yes or no? A. No. 

Q. At the time I asked you to name the ships that you 
worked on, did you have in mind the steamship "McCullough" ? 
A. No. 

Q. You had forgotten that at the moment, is that right? 
A. No. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 335 

Q. You had not forgotten it? A. No. 

Q. Well, now, after you left the McCullough, did you con- 
tinue in the service of the United States Government ? A. Yes. 

Q. What ship did you work on next? A. The U. S. S. 
"Perry." 

Q. You have that name very readily, haven't you? You 
had it right at the tip of your tongue, didn't you? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, what is the U. S. S. "Perry" ? A. An antiquated 
destroyer. 

Q. In the United States Navy? A. Yes. 

Q. What work did you do on that ship? A. Deck officer. 

Q. Were you commissioned? A, No, sir. 

Q. Were you a petty officer? A. No, sir. 

Q. What salary did you get when you worked on the Mc- 
Cullough? A. $1,700 and ten per cent. 

Q. $1,700 a year and ten per cent? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What salary did you get when you went to work on the 
U. S. S. "Perry" ? A. The same. 

Q. How long did you work on the "Perry" ? A. Seven weeks, 
about. 

Q. That would bring us along to about the — A. The first 
of September. 

Q. First of September, 1917? A. Yes. 

Q. What is the next ship you worked on? A. The steamer 
China. 

Q. Was that in the naval service of the United States? A. 
No, sir. 

Q. What company controlled that and owned it? A. The 
China Mail Steamship Company. 

Q. What position did you hold on that? A. Third Officer. 

Q. What was your salary on that ? A. $140 a month. 

Q. How long did you work on the China ? A. Eight months. 

Q. Do you mean to tell this jury that a few minutes ago, 
when you said you could not remember the names of these 
ships, that you forgot the name of a steamship you worked 
on for eight months ? What is your answer ? A. No. 



336 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Your answer is "no." Then when you testified a few 
minutes ago that the only one you could remember was that 
Jennie or Jessie or Geraldine Mahoney, did you testify to the 
truth? A. At that particular moment, yes. 

Q. But you worked on the "Girley Mahoney" only a month 
and a half. You worked on the China eight months. Do you 
mean to say you could remember a ship that you worked 
on for a month and a half better than you could remember 
a ship you worked on for eight months? A. That was more 
than a year later, about a year later. 

Q. Yes, and a year nearer to this trial. But isn't that so? 
A. Yes. 

Q. You can remember things that happened long ago much 
better than things that happened yesterday and a few months 
ago. Isn't that so? A. Not necessarily. 

Q. Your memory gets better as time passes. You remember 
it better, don't you? Isn't that so? In other words, time 
makes your memory better, doesn't it, Mr. Martin? A. Not 
necessarily. 

Q. Hasn't it in this case? You testified here yesterday 
as to the location of certain things at Bellevue Hospital. You 
came back this morning and admitted you were mistaken. 
You were up there only three or four months ago. You testified 
here today as to certain things that happened away back 
in March, 1917, on a little ship, the "Girley Mahoney," but 
you could not remember the "Perry" and the "China" and 
the "McCullough," could you, when you were asked ? A. Yes. 

Q. But you did not remember them when you were asked, 
did you ? A. I was thinking oi other vessels that I w9.s trying 
to connect with right after March, 1917. 

Q. Weren't you thinking, Mr. Martin, about the testimony 
you gave yesterday? A. No, sir. 

Q. That you went to work for the United States Govern- 
ment in November, 1918? A. No, sir. 

Mr. Osborne — There is no such testimony ^s tbat in t^e 
jjje.cQrd. Read his examination. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 537 

Q. Now, Mr. Martin^ 

Mr. Osborne — Read the first question you asked him. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — ^Wait a moment. You can do that. 
You can straighten him out. 

Mr. Osborne — You ought not to treat him unfairly, 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — No, not at all ; and he ought not to 
treat me unfairly. 

Mr. Osborne — He has not. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — Oh, he has not ! I am conscious of 
what he has done, Mr. Osborne. I am not afraid to face him 
here and look him in the eye, 

Q. Mr. Martin, you did not pick out the Mecca Restaurant 
as the place where you saw me with this other man because 
that restaurant was out of existence? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you know it was out of existence before you took 
the stand here yesterday ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. So you knew when you took the stand here yesterday that 
the defense in this case would not be able to get a diagram 
or a plan of that restaurant, didn't you? A. No. 

Q. Well, you said you knew it was out of existence? A. Yes. 

Q. But you did not think about whether we would be 
able to get the diagram or plan. That was not in your mind? 
A. I was not concerned about that. 

Q. Now, Mr. Martin, was there any snow on the ground 
between the 1st of January, 1917, and the 16th of January, 
1917? A. Yes. 

Q. There was snow on the ground? How long did it stay 
on the ground ? A. All the time, as far as I remember, 

Q. Do you know what the freezing point is? A. 32 degrees 
Fahrenheit. 

Q. You know that when the temperature rises to a point 
about 32 degrees Fahrenheit that snow melts ? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you know that on the 5th day of January, 1917, 
it was quite warm ? A. I do not remember. 

Q. You do not remember that. You have testified now 
that there was snow on the ground every day from the 1st 



338 My Political Trial and Experiences 

of January, 1917, to the 16th of January, 1917, haven't you? 
A. As far as I remember. 

Q. Now, do you want to change that testimony before I 
go any further? A. No. 

Q. Is your recollection of what happened at 145th Street 
and Broadway in and around that restaurant as good as your 
recollection about whether or not there was snow on the ground 
all the time during those sixteen days ? A. I do not know any- 
thing about snow. 

Q. You don't know anything about snow? A. No. 

Q. If you don't know anything about the snow, why did you 
testify there was snow on the ground ? A. I merely remember 
it was cold weather. 

Q. Now Mr. Martin, you are here testifying in a case where 
a man is liable to be sentenced for one hundred years. Do you 
know that? A. I have heard you make that statement. 

Q. And you know that man has a wife and four children, 
too, don't you? A. No. 

Q. Didn't you ever hear that before? A. I have heard you 
make the statement now. 

Q. Don't you think you ought to be a little bit more careful 
since you are in the government service and know that, Mr. 
Martin, about your testimony ? A. Naturally. 

Q. Have you been careful? A. As far as I could be. 

Q. Do you believe in God? A. What has that to do with 
the case? 

Q. You have taken an oath to tell the truth. I ask you 
if you believe in the God before whom you took the oath? A. 
Yes. 

Q. When you swore to tell the truth, did you intend to tell 
the truth ? A. Absolutely. 

Q. Now, in the face of the fact that you have testified 
there was snow on the ground from the 1st of January, 1917, 
to the 16th of January, 1917, and that later you told this 
jury you did not know whether there was any snow on the 
ground or not, will you retract your testimony, Mr. Martin, 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 339 

that you saw me at or around that corner at the times you 
have testified to ? Will you do it ? A, I will not, 

Q. Will you still insist upon it ? A. Yes. 

Q. You are a sailor? A. Yes. 

Q. You would notice winds, wouldn't you ? A. Yes. 

Q. And being a sailor, you would notice weather, too? 
Wouldn't you ? A. To some extent. 

Q. Don't you know that as a sailor that two of the things 
that are uppermost in a sailor's mind are wind and weather? 
A. Out at sea. 

Q. Only at sea? You forget about them on land? Is 
that it? A. Yes. 

O. Do you remember where you sat? A. Yes. 

(In the restaurant.) 

Q. Will you please indicate on that diagram which is 
marked Defendant's Exhibit A-64 in evidence, the table where 
you sat. A. The third table from the front. 

Q. Please mark it "M." The first time you were in, the 
table where you sat, the first time you were in, please mark 
it M-1? A. (Witness complies.) 

Q. Now, the second time you were in the place, mark it 
M-2? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Have you marked it M-2 ? A. Yes. 

Q. The third time you were in the place, mark it M-3? 
A. Yes. 

Q. Now then, will you please mark on that diagram the 
table where you say I sat, 0-1 ? A. Yes. 

Q. The second time, L-2. A. Yes. 

Q. And the third time, make an "L" or make an "R-3." 
A. "R"? 

Q. "R," yes. A. (Witness compHes and hands diagram to 
counsel). 

Q. Now, you have the table, the same table all the time 
where you say you sat? A. Yes. 

Q. The same table all the time where you say I sat. A. 
You did not sit there the third time. 



340 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. You have marked it? A. You did not sit at the table. 
Give me that back. 

Q. You have marked it. Wait a moment, now. Just a 
moment before you get it back. A. All right. 

Q. You have marked it with a mark running around the 
table from one side of it to the other. You have marked it 
0-1, L-2, hyphen R-3. Now, you did not say when I asked 
you a moment ago to mark where I sat on each occasion, you 
did not make any exceptions or reservations, did you, Mr. 
Martin ? You did not. Now you want to make a little change, 
is that it? A. I want to put that correct. I want to make it 
right. You asked me where I sat on the third occasion and 
I went ahead and wrote it down following along your psy- 
chology. 

Q. All right. Make your change, Mr. Martin. A. (Wit- 
ness complies). 

Q. Now, you have crossed out the R-3 on the paper, haven't 
you, on the paper, and you want to change your testimony to 
that extent accordingly, is that right ? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, since you have crossed me out, please put me 
somewhere. Put me back on there again, where I was. 

The Court — You mean the third time? 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — Surely; that is the time he crossed 
me out. 

A. In the aisle there, close to the coatroom. Not at any table. 

Q. So the third time you say you saw me in there, I was 
standing in the aisle near the coatroom and not close to any 
table? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How many times have you talked to Mr. Taylor? A. 
Twice; besides passing the time of day. 

Q. Have you talked to Doctor Bischoff ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How many times ? A. I don't know. 

Q. How many times have you talked to Doctor Bischoff 
about this case? Tell us now. You are a man of intelligence. 
Tell us. A. I don't know. 

Q. About. A. I could not tell you. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 341 

Q. Do you mean to say you talked to him so many times 
you cannot remember. A. Exactly so. 

Q. About this case? A. Yes, sir — no, not about this case; 
not about this case. This case is "Bull," is it not? 

Q. That is what I thought it was all the time, but "Bull" 
has been buried two or three or four days ago. A. I have not 
spoken about "Bull" to Doctor Bischoff. 

Q. Now, didn't you talk to Doctor Bischoff about the testi- 
mony you were going to give or that you have given at this 
trial ? A. Yes. 

Q. And you talked to him about that so many times you 
cannot remember? A. Yes. 

Q. It did not take you very long to answer Mr. Osborne's 
questions, did it? It only took you about five or six minutes 
on your direct? A. Yes. 

Q. And despite the fact your testimony was very brief, you 
talked to Doctor Bischoff about it so many times you cannot 
remember. A. Yes. 

Q. Now, Mr. Martin, was it because your recollection was 
poor and he was helping you out with it? Was that the idea? 
A. Not at all. 

Q. You just kept telling him about the thing all the time? 
A. Talking about it. 

Q. You kept repeating to Doctor Bischoff what you told 
the jury yesterday? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Was it because you were so afraid that you might 
forget it that you kept repeating it and repeating it to 
him so many times that you cannot remember the number of 
times ? A. I cannot remember the number of times. 

Q. The question is that you were so afraid of forgetting 
it that you kept repeating it to him so many times that you 
cannot remember the number of times, is that right ? A. There 
are too many questions there. 

Q. Did you expect a little increase in your salary? A. Not 
any. 

Q. If Mr. Taylor is pleased with your testimony do you 
expect he will recommend an increase for you? A. No, sir. 



342 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Were you promoted, Mr. Martin, after you first told 
your story about this incident? A. No, sir. 

Q. Were you promoted before you told it? A. No, sir. 

Q. Well, did you tell your story first before the first of 
November, 1918? A. No, sir. 

Q. Then you told your story after you went in the Govern- 
ment's employ? A. In this job. 

Q. On this job? A. On this job. 

Q. When was that? A. When I went on this, I went to work 
in this position in November, 1918. 

Q. In other words you told your story that you told yes- 
terday when you went to work on this job where you began 
work in November, 1918, is that right? A. After I had started 
on the job. 

Q. Oh, they were about the same time? A. About the same 
time. 

Q. In other words, you got your job first and told your 
story afterwards ? A. Yes. 

Q. You wanted to be sure you would get your job before 
you would tell the story, is that the way it was ? A. No. 

Q. Doctor Bischoff, he is quite an influential man in the 
Department of Justice, isn't he ? A. I don't know. 

Q. Where did you talk to him? A. 15 Park Row. 

Q. That is what they call the Park Row Building, isn't it? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Up in the office of the Department of Justice? A. Yes,sir. 

Q. Did he have you locked in a room ? A. No, sir. 

Q. You could go in and out whenever you wanted to, couldn't 
you? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How many times have you talked to Doctor Bischoflf? 
Tell us. A. I don't know. 

Q. How many times a week have you talked to him? A. 
Every day. 

Q. How many hours a day have you talked to him about 
it? About? A. I don't know. 

Q. Well, one hour? A. I don't know. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 343 

Q, Two hours ? A. Sometimes for a few minutes, and some- 
times for more than an hour. 

Q. Do you mean to tell this jury that you talked to Doctor 
Bischoff about the testimony that took you not more than ten 
minutes to give yesterday so many times you cannot remember, 
and on some occasions for more than an hour? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. A man who is an inspector of hulls for the United States 
government — ^that is your position, is that right ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. The burden of seeing whether or not Uncle Sam's ships 
are properly constructed is upon you, isn't it? A. No. 

Q. Well, you share part of the responsibility, don't you ? A. 
Not in the construction of them. 

Q. You inspect hulls, don't you? A. Yes, sir, I do. 

Q. From the inside or outside? A. Both. 

Q. To see that they don't leak, is that right? A. That is 
the idea. 

Q. To see that they are properly rivetted? A. That is the 
idea. 

Q. To see that they are not full of holes, is that it ? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. Is your recollection, or is your observation of the hulls 
as good as your recollection about the snow in January, 1917, 
Mr. Martin? A. I do not consider that relevant at all. 

Q. You don't consider that relevant? You think you are 
perfectly competent to inspect hulls, is that it? A. I am in 
the position. 

Q. You are working for the United States Government at 
this time? A. Yes. 

Q. It is your duty to inspect hulls? A. Yes. 

Q. Your place of work is where? A. San Francisco, Cali- 
fornia. 

Q. You were brought on from San Francisco? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. At the Government's expense ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. To the City of New York? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. For the purpose of talking about these incidents you 
have testified about? A. Yes. 



344 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. And to identify me, if possible ; wasn't that it ? A, That 
was part of it. 

Q. Did you know that before you came? A. Yes. 

Q. Had you been in correspondence with the Department 
of Justice by letter? A. No, 

Q. By word? A. No. 

Q. By agent ? A. Yes, but not until the day before I started. 

Q. From San Francisco ? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you come here with him on the train ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you talk to him about this case on the way East? 
A. No. 

Q. Did you talk to him about it at all? A. No. 

Q. Do you mean to tell this jury you travelled on a train 
from San Francisco to New York about your testimony in 
this case, and you did not talk to him from the time you 
left San Francisco until you arrived in New York? A. Not 
about the case. 

Q. About the testimony? A. No. 

Q. Is the other testimony you have given in this case as 
true as that ? A. Yes ; it is all true. 

Q. All true? A. To the best of my knowledge and ability. 

Q. Even the part you have taken back. Is that all true, 
too ? A. Oh, you make me tired. 

Q. That was not true, was it? A. What? 

Q. The part you took back. A. In regard to Bellevue? 

Q. Yes, and in regard to the snow. A. Oh, shucks. 

Q. And in regard to the table, the 0-1, the L-2 and the R-3, 
you took that back, didn't you ? A. I took back the R-3. 

Q. Who was the agent of the Department of Justice that 
brought you fronj San Francisco to New York? A. I came 
with a man by the name of Blanford. 

Q. Is he a New York man? A. No. 

Q. San Francisco man ? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you talk to him about the case before you came 
East? A. No. 

Q. When did you arrive in New York? A. I do not re- 
member the date ; it was in November. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 345 

Q. November, 1918. A. Yes. 

Q. How long had you been working for the United States 
Government when you were brought to New York? A. I had 
just a few days before got the present position I have. 

Q. In other words, you got your job a few days before 
you started East to become a witness in this case, is that right ? 
A. No. 

Q. When did you get your job? A. November, 1918. 

Q. What date? A. The 13th. 

Q. You started to work on the 13th? A. Yes. 

Q. It is the 13th today, do you know that? A. No. 

Q. When did you start for New York, Mr. Martin? A. I 
do not remember the date. 

Q. How long after the 13th of November was it you started 
for New York? A. A few days. 

Q. How many days? A. I don't know. 

Q. Did you talk over this case with any representative of 
the government before you got your job? A. No. 

Q. Are you sure ? A. Yes. 

Q. Positive? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you make any preparations to come to New York 
before you left San Francisco? A. No. 

Q. You came on the jump, is that it? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you actually go to work out in San Francisco? 
A. Yes. 

Q. Did you inspect any hulls ? A. Not before I started. 

Q. You were hired as an inspector of hulls by the United 
States Government, and you never did any of your work 
before you left San Francisco to come to New York, is that 
right? A. Yes. 

Q. When did you arrive in New York ? A. I don't know the 
date. 

Q. What was the approximate date you arrived in New 
York? A. Approximately the 23rd of November. 

Q. How many days did it take you to come cross country? 
A. Four days and a half. 

Q. Did you come first class? A. Yes, sir. , 



346 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. When you came to New York did you go inspecting 
hulls? A. No, sir. 

Q. Where did you go ? A. I went to the Park Row Building. 

Q. The Department of Justice ? A. Yes. 

Q. Have you inspected any hulls ever since? A. Yes. 

Q. Where? A. San Francisco. 

Q. When did you return to San Francisco ? A. The 23rd of 
December. 

Q. 1918? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. When did you leave San Francisco again? A. January 
31st. 

Q. And you have not been inspecting any hulls ever since? 
A. No. 

Q. So you have been working for the United States Govern- 
ment since the 13th of November, 1918, and the only work 
you have done for the United States Government is between 
what dates? A. The 24th of December. 

Q. The 24th of December and the 31st of January? A. Yes. 

Q. Five weeks work, is that right ? A. Yes. 

Q. What have you been doing in the meantime? Having 
a good time? A. I have been here in New York. 

Q. Drawing your salary from the government ? A. Yes. 

Q. Getting your hotel expenses ? A. Yes. 

Q. If you have not been living at a hotel, how is it you 
are drawing down hotel expenses? A. You can call it hotel 
expenses, if you want to ; I have a room over in Brooklyn and 
get my meals where it suits me. 

Q. And you get reimbursed by the government ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you get witness's mileage from San Francisco? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. How much did you get ? 

Mr. Osborne — He is mistaken about that; he did not get 
mileage. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — ^Let him alone, Mr. Osborne; don't 
tell him anything. 

The Witness — Actual travelling expenses. 

Q. Is that all? A. That is all. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 347 

Q. You have practically been in the custody and in the 
company of agents of the Department of Justice ever since 
the 31st of January, 1919, haven't you? A. No. 

Q. You have not? A. No, sir, 

Q. Did you ever meet Doctor Bischoff before the 31st of 
January, 1919? A. Yes. 

Q. You met him when you were here in New York in No- 
vember and December? A. In November and December, yes. 

Q. You met Mr. Olney ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Met Mr. Taylor? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you ever meet Mr. DeWoody ? A. Yes. 

Q. How many times? A. Once a week. 

Q. At his office in 21 Park Row? A. 15, the Park Row 
Building. 

Q. Now, Mr. Olney, how many times did you meet him? 
A. Every day practically. 

Q. Talked to him every day about the case? A. No. 

Q. Have you talked to him so many times about the case 
that you cannot remember the number of times too? A. Yes. 

Q. So you talked to Doctor Bischoff so many times you 
cannot remember the number of times, and you have talked 
to Mr. Olney so many times, you cannot remember the number 
of times, is that right ? A. Yes. 

Q. And the best you are able to do after all the talking you 
did with them was what you testified to on direct examination 
yesterday in answer to Mr. Osborne's questions? A. I an- 
swered the questions as they were asked me. 

Q. Do you know a man named Jentzer? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Is Mr. Jentzer in court? A. Yes, sir. (A man stands up.) 

Q. Is that Jentzer? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. That man alongside of him, please stand up. 

(Person indicated stands up.) 

Q. Do you know that man. A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did he say, "Hello, Martin" to you this morning? A. 
Yes, sir. l 

Q. Do you know Herbert Rosenbush? A. No, sir; not by 
name. 



348 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Have you been talking to that sailor here that is right 
here and has been a witness in this case? A. Yes. 

Q. You talked to him before he went on the stand? A, Yes. 

Q. You have been talking to quite a few witnesses in this 
case? A. Two that I know of. 

Q. You have been acting as a secret service man for the 
government? A. No. 

Q. Haven't you been telling these witnesses things to say? 
A. No. 

Q. Haven't you been holding conversations with these 
witnesses right here in the court room about their testimony, 
and about your testimony ? A. No. 

Q. Have you done any investigating work for this case or 
this government since you have been in New York ? A. No. 

Q. Sure about that ? A. Yes. 

Q. How long did you talk to that man over there (Abeles 
proprietor of the Mecca Restaurant) sitting alongside of Mr. 
Jentzer this morning? A. Long enough to pass the time of 
day. 

Q. Do you mean to tell this jury that the only thing you 
did in that conversation with him was to pass the time of the 
day? A. Absolutely. 

Q. Do you realize that there were people around you and 
behind you and looking at you? A. Yes. 

Q. To pass the time of day you just talk a little bit, don't 
you; good morning, sir and good morning, Mr. Martin? 
That is passing the time of day, isn't it ? A. Yes. 

Q. You were talking with him, weren't you ? A. No. 

Q. Mr. Breen, will you please stand up? 

(The person indicated stands up.) 

(Mr. Breen, a spectator, later took the stand and contradicted Martin 
flatly, asserting he talked with Abeles several minutes.) 

Q. See that man? A. Yes. 

Q. Ever see him before? A. Not that I know of. 

Mr. O'Leary — Thank you very much, Mr. Breen. 

Q. You and the proprietor of this restaurant and these 
waiters have got this thing all fixed up between yourselves, 
haven't you, Mr. Martin. A No. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 349 

Q. Sure about that? A. Yes. 

Q. What time did you go to this restaurant the first time 
that you say you saw me in there? A. Sometime after five 
o'clock ; about five or after. 

Q. How long were you in there altogether? A, A half an 
hour or more. 

Q. A half an hour or more may mean two hours or may 
mean three hours, or may mean thirty-five minutes. How 
long? Be more definite, please. A. I said a half an hour or 
more. 

Q. What do you mean by "or more"? How much time 
is included in that? A. Just as you designate it, one, two or 
three hours. 

Q. Can you not give us with more definiteness the time 
you were in there the first time you say you saw me in that 
restaurant? A. No. 

Q. You cannot tell us now whether it was a half hour or 
whether it was four hours ? A. I cannot. 

Q. How about the second time? A. The same. 

Q. How about the third time? A. The same. 

Q. Now, what time did Jeremiah O'Leary walk in there? 
A. After I was in the restaurant. 

Q. How long after you got in there? A. I did not count 
the minutes. 

Q. Did you count the hours? A. No. 

Q. Mr. Martin ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Do you realize that you have not given any details about 
these so-called visits, or these visits that you say were made 
except that you have fixed the tables, you have described a 
dark, stout short man as you have called him that you say 
was with me on the third occasion, and you have fixed the 
place where you say I was on the third occasion. Do you 
realize that? A. Yes. 

Q. Can't you give us any more details than those? A. No, sir. 

Q. Do you know that my home at that time was within 
twenty blocks of that restaurant? A. No, sir. 

Q. You did not know that? A. No. 



350 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Did you realize that my dinner hour was 7 o'clock in 
the evening? A. No. 

Q. Did you realize that ? A. No. 

Q. Do you say that I went into that restaurant and ate 
at the table, Mr. Martin? A. I said you were at the table. 

Q. Do you swear that I ate there f A. No. 

Q. It is rather extraordinary for a man to go into a restaur- 
ant and sit down at a table and not eat, isn't it ? A. No. 

Q. So you say I had some drinks in there? A. I did not 
say so. 

Q. Can you tell the jury any details about what you say 
I did in there ? A. Not any other than that you sat at the table 
that Schroejers was at. 

Q. You know that is false, Mr. Martin, don't you? A. I 
don't know; no. 

Q. You know, Mr. Martin, that is false, don't you? A. No. 

Q. You know you have been instigated to say that, don't 
you, Mr. Martin, by some agent of the Department of Justice ? 
Don't you know that ? A. No. 

Q. Don't you know I know that ? A. No. 

Q. Don't you know, Mr. Martin, I know whether I was in 
that restaurant in my life or not ? Don't you know that ? Don't 
you know you are being questioned by a man who knows 
whether what you are saying is true or false? Don't you 
know that ? A. Yes. 

Q. Mr. Martin, don't you know your testimony is false? 
A. No. 

Q. Don't you know that you and Jentzer and Doctor Bis- 
choff, and Olney and these agents of the Department of Justice 
have framed your story up and given you a government job for 
the purpose of coming here and swearing away the life and 
liberty, the liberty first and the life afterwards, of Jeremiah 
O'Leary? Don't you know that? A. No. 

Q. Have you a wife? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Have you any children? A. Yes. 

Q. Have you a conscience? A. Yes. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 351 

Q. Look at me. Have you a conscience, Mr. Martin? A. 
Yes. 

Q. Has your conscience been testifying in this case? A. 
Yes. 

Q. Or has your job been the consideration? A. My con- 
science. 

Q. Was your conscience testifying when you said there was 
snow on the ground all the time from January 1st, 1917 to 
January 16, 1917? Was that your conscience? A. As I under- 
stood it at the time. 

Q. Was your conscience testifying when later you said you 
did not know whether there was any snow on the ground at 
all ? Was your conscience testifying then ? A. Yes. 

Q. Mr. Martin, when you swore that I had a white bath- 
robe on at Bellevue, was your conscience testifying then? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. When you swore later, when you saw a brown bathrobe, 
when you insisted it was still a white robe, was your conscience 
testifying then? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. When you failed to give the names of the ships you say 
you worked on in the West, when you said you did not re- 
member them, was your conscience testifying then? A. Yes. 

Q. Later on you remembered them quite readily, didn't you ? 
A. As you brought up them, each one of them. 

Q. You knew them at the time you said you did not remem- 
ber them, didn't you? A. As you brought up to them, I re- 
membered them. 

Q. I didn't tell you what their names were? A. No. 

Q. You knew what they were when you said you did not 
remember, didn't youf A. Yes. 

Q. You have now testified that when you said you did not 
remember you knew what their names were, haven't you? 
Haven't you ? A. No. 

Q. Didn't you just testify in answer to my question that 
when you said you did not remember, you knew their names? 
Didn't you so testify? A. Not at that moment I did not. 



352 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Does your memory come one moment and go another 
moment on things that take up eight months of your Ufe? 
Does it? A. Not necessarily. 

Q. Mr. Martin, please look this way. Please don't look any 
more at Mr. Marshall or Mr. Osborne or their way. I am en- 
titled to your eyes and so is the jury. A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Can't you give us some more details about this short 
man you saw whose face you did not see? A. No, sir. 

Q. How did you know he was dark if you did not see his 
face? How did you know that? A. His hair was black. 

Q. Oh, his hair was dark. Do you mean to say that be- 
cause a man's hair is dark, you say the man is dark ? A. That 
is what I inferred. 

Q. Don't you know when you said a short dark man you 
referred to his complexion ? Don't you know that ? A. No. 

Q. Don't you know that if you meant his hair you would 
have said dark-haired man? Don't you know that? A. No. 

Q. Was your conscience testifying, Mr. Martin, when you 
said you did not see his face? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you mean to tell this jury that any human being 
would walk into that restaurant in plain view of you where 
you said you were sitting at a table, and he would not turn 
his face towards the restaurant proper? Do you mean to say 
a man would practically walk in backwards into a restaurant? 
Do you mean to say that? A. No. 

Q. Now, you have the screen here. You have put the man 
over here. Didn't the man have to have his face towards 
you to get to that point? A. Yes. 

Q. Then you saw his face, didn't you? A. No. 

Q. Oh. He turned his back on you before you saw it? 
A. Yes. 

Q. Is that right? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, who was with that short dark man ? A. You were. 

Q. I was. What did I do there? A. Spoke to somebody 
in the restaurant. 

Q. Who was the somebody? A. I don't know. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 353 

Q. Now, you have me speaking to somebody in the restaur- 
ant. You did not say that before, did you? A. Yes. 

Q. You did ? You put me first at a table, didn't you, on the 
third occasion, didn't you? A, No. 

Q. Don't you know that on that diagram you crossed out the 
R-3 which you said indicated that I was at that table on the 
third occasion? Don't you know that? A. Yes. 

Q. Now then you put me at the table on the third occasion, 
didn't you? A. At your request. 

Q. At my request? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, Mr. Martin, don't you know that the only request 
I made was that you state on that diagram first the table I sat 
at? A. Yes. 

Q. With the letter O-l ; the table I sat at when I was in there 
the second time with the letter L-2? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you remember that? A. Yes. 

Q. And the table you say I sat at when you say I was in 
there the third time with the letter R-3. Wasn't that the way 
the thing was done this morning? A. Yes. 

Q. And you put me on that third occasion at that table, 
didn't you? A. Temporarily. 

Q. Do you mean to say you put me there when you now 
testify that I did not go there? A. Yes. 

Q. You do ? A.I corrected myself. 

Q. You corrected yourself. Your memory was bad; you 
made a bad slip, didn't you ? A. It was not a slip at all. 

Q. It was a slip, wasn't it? A. No. 

Q. You knew I was going to ask you questions about the 
short heavy set man, didn't you? A. No. 

Q. You did not? A. No. 

Q. You were not planning ahead? A. No. 

Q. You were not protecting yourself, were you? A. Not 
at all. 

Q. Let us go back again to the entrance into the restaurant. 
Mr. Martin, you have indicated yourself at the table here, M-1, 
2, 3, right here? A. Yes. 



354 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Right here (exhibiting diagram to jury). If you can't 
see this, say so. A. I can see it. 

Q. Here is your indication of the entrance? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, to see a man, a man standing there where you made 
that circle, you would have to be faced towards the door, 
wouldn't you ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Now, then, do you still mean to say, after referring to 
this man as dark, that you say stood near the door, with your 
face towards the door you did not see his face? A. I did not 
see his face. 

Q. Now, let us have a description of the other man you say 
I spoke to. What did he look like? A. I don't know; I did 
not see him. 

Q. Didn't you say I spoke to another man? A. I said you 
spoke to some person in the restaurant. 

Q. Some person in the restaurant at that door ? A. Yes. 

Q. Who was it ? A. I do not know. 

Q. Was it a man or woman ? A. I do not know. 

Q. Could you see whether it was a man or woman? A. I 
don't know. 

Q. Well, if you could not see whether it was a man or 
woman, how can you say I spoke to a person? A. I could 
see a person there. 

Q. Do you know of any other sex ? Is there a male, female 
and person? Is that your idea of sexes? A. A person 
may be either male or female. 

Q. This person that you say I spoke to, do you still insist 
that you cannot tell whether that person was a man or woman ? 
A. Yes. 

Q. Was the person in plain view ? A. No. 

Q. Where was the person? A. The person was obstructed 
by yourself and the man that was with you. 

Q. Was the person there before myself and the man that 
was with me came in? A. I do not know. 

Q. Well, if I spoke to a person at the door, that person must 
have been there, before, Mr. Martin, Was he? A. I do not 
know. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 355 

Q. You were faced that way, according to your testimony? 
A. Yes. 

Q. You do not want to tell this jury that I went into that 
restaurant and came right out again after talking to some per- 
son whom you now cannot describe? A. Yes. 

Q. Well, now, you must know some more details. Don't 
you know some more details for us? You don't know any 
more details ? A. Not in regard to that incident. 

Q. Did the person stay in or did the person go out with 
that alleged myself? A. I don't know. 

Q. Can't you tell us whether or not that person was in there 
when you went in and remained when I went out ? A. I don't 
know. 

Q. Can you tell us whether or not the three persons, the 
alleged persons, went out together? A. No. 

Q. Was Mr. Roediger in there at that time? A. I do not 
know. 

Q. Did you intend to testify on your direct examination yes- 
terday that he was ? A. I did not. 

Q. Did you always sit with your face towards the door at 
the table marked M-1, 2 and 3 ? A. Not always. 

Q. On these three occasions you have mentioned, did you 
sit with your face towards the door ? A. I do not remember. 

Q. Can you fix the time when you say I went into that res- 
taurant on either of these three occasions? Can you do it? 
A. In the evening ; that is all. 

Q. Can you fix the hour? Was it five, five thirty, six, six 
thirty, seven, seven thirty, eight, eight thirty, nine, nine thirty, 
ten, ten thirty, eleven o'clock, or any time? Can you fix the 
time? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you get a description of that restaurant from the 
former proprietor of it, Mr. Martin ? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you talk to him about that this morning ? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you talk to him about that last night ? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you see him last night ? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you see him before you went on the stand yesterday ? 
A. No, sir. 



356 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Did anybody give you a description of that place? A. 
No, sir. 

Q. Can you recollect what you ordered there? A. No, sir. 

Q. You cannot recollect that? A. No. 

Q. Can you give us the day of the week? A. No, sir. 

Q. Can you tell us whether it was Sunday? A. No, sir. 

Q. Or Saturday? A. No, sir. 

Q. Or Monday ? A. No, sir. 

Q. When you drew that diagram and indicated the place 
where you say I was standing on the third occasion, you in- 
dicated a place that was well within the screen, didn't you? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. A place that would be four-fifths of the distance from 
the table where you say you sat to that screen, is that right? 
A. Within ten feet of me. 

Q. Within ten feet? A. Yes. 

Q. Now, how far am I from you now, about? A. About — 
oh, eight or nine; close on to ten feet. 

Q. I was dressed with a cutaway coat and striped pants ? 
A. Yes. 

Q. What? A. Yes, sir, as far as I know. 

Q. If I came in off the street and stood at the place you 
have indicated and went out again, do you mean to say I would 
take my overcoat off? A. I do not know that I ever saw your 
overcoat. 

Q. Do you mean to tell this jury that I went in there in a 
cutaway coat and striped pants and stood there for a few 
minutes, and then went out again? A. That is what I said. 

Q. Is that your testimony? A. Yes. 

Q. You stated that the other man had an overcoat on, didn't 
you, A. Yes. 

Q. Well, the man I was supposed to come in with, he wore 
an overcoat, but I didn't have any overcoat, although I came in 
with him, is that it? A. I do not know whether you had an 
overcoat or not. 

Q. Didn't you say a moment ago that I always wore a cut- 
away coat and striped pants ? A, Yes. 



Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness 357 

Q. How could you tell what I had underneath if I had an 
overcoat on? A. I said I did not know anything about your 
overcoat. 

Q. How can you say what underclothes I had on when you 
cannot say whether I had an overcoat on or not? A. I saw 
your clothes ; I did not see the overcoat, as far as I know. 

Q. Do you think you could see through an overcoat ? A. No. 

Q. How about a hat, the last time? Did I have a hat on? 
A. I said I did not see your hat. 

Q. What is your testimony? I did or did not? A. I said 
I did not see your hat. 

Q. What is your testimony ? That I did or did not have a 
hat on ? A. I said I did not see your hat. 

Q. That might mean you did not take any notice of my hat. 
Which is it? You did not take notice of it or I did not have 
any on? Which is it? A. That I did not see your hat. 

Q. Which is it ? That you did not take notice as to whether 
I had a hat or that you did not see it, or there was no hat on ? 
Which is it ? Can't you tell us yourself ? A. I said I did not 
see your hat. 

Q. Won't you answer that question in any other way? A. 
I cannot answer that question in any other way ; I did not see 
your hat. 

Q. Then is your testimony I had no hat ? A. No. 

Q. You were not blind ? A. No. 



X 

THE DEFENSE OPENS. 

On February 13th, Arthur T. O'Leary, my brother, made 
the opening statement on my behalf. He spoke for two hours, 
and in a quiet, impressive manner sketched my life from in- 
fancy. He traced all my activities, outlined my struggle for 
pure and unadulterated Americanism, how I fought the so- 
called Arbitration Treaties, worked for an American Merchant 
Marine and opposed the Wilson Panama Canal Tolls Repeal 
Act. He described my opposition to the "One Hundred Years 
of Peace" celebration, my advocacy of the rights of American 
citizens over aliens in public works, told of my advancement 
in my profession, how I had built up a clientele among lawyers 
as a trial counsel, how demands by Irish societies upon my time 
for speeches and work had gradually drawn me from my pro- 
fession, undermined my health, and how in 1916, as a result of 
strenuous exertions to defeat Woodrow Wilson for the 
presidency I had collapsed and become a nervous and physical 
wreck. He next outlined the work of the American Truth 
Society, its organization, the results it had achieved, and finally 
how as an instrument to combat British propaganda I had es- 
tablished "Bull" and built it up to such an extent that its press 
run for the October issue — the last number — was 48,000 copies, 
and how the Administration had smashed an enterprise built 
up by hard work and sacrifice by its tyranny and intolerance. 
He told of how for political revenge, I had been singled out for 
oppressive treatment by the Administration and that this perse- 
cution was actuated by a spirit of retaliation for my persistent 
opposition to the President's pre-war policies. He then dis- 
cussed the case as presented by the Government, denounced 
Victorica and brought the courtroom to rigid attention by sud- 
denly turning and pointing to Mme. Gonzales, one of the 
Government's star witnesses. Shaking his finger at her, he 

358 




Lieut. Arthur T. O'Leary, Defended His Brother Jeremiah Upon 
His Resignation from the Aviation Service. 



The Defense Opens 359 

thundered, "When you bring in a verdict of acquittal in this 
case, we shall ask the court to hold that woman for perjury, 
for we are going to show by the most conclusive and reliable 
evidence that she has committed the most shameful perjury, 
not only against this defendant, but against the Irish Race." 
Mrs. Gonzales, who was seated nearby turned ashen, and as 
soon as Arthur turned again to the jury, the woman fled from 
the courtroom. She was not seen there again until she en- 
tered it under subpoena as a witness. Arthur's opening ad- 
dress was followed with the closest attention by Judge and 
jury and everyone in the courtroom. It had a profound effect 
on the jury. 

He was followed by William H. Daly, counsel for Adolph 
Stern, a clerk, indicted with me, on the theory that he had con- 
spired with me. Mr. Daly ridiculed this theory in his final 
assertion, "The only conspiracy my client committed was one 
to earn twenty-five dollars a week." Mr. Felder, my chief 
counsel, next followed and spoke for two hours eloquently 
and convincingly, asserting that "the defendant, O'Leary, is 
the victim of persecution, the motive of which we shall prove." 
Mr. Felder exonerated Messrs. Marshall and Osborne of com- 
plicity in this conspiracy and attributed it to the corruption 
of secret agents of the Government, to whom had been un- 
wisely entrusted the unrestricted use of money in lavish 
amounts. The opening addresses occupied the entire day, on 
Thursday. The way having been cleared for evidence, the 
first witness was called the following day, Friday, February 
14th. 

Mrs. Frances Brannigan, mother of one of the first members 
of the Sixty-Ninth Regiment to be killed in France, was the first 
witness to take the stand. Attired in deep mourning for her son, 
but youthful in appearance, blond and pretty, she was a notably 
effective witness. She absolutely contradicted Mme, Gonzales 
the star witness for the Government, and stated that the meet- 
ing held at 715 Lexington Avenue, in July, 1917, was called 
by my brother, John J. O'Leary for the purpose of securing 
volunteer workers to classify the names of the donors and con- 



360 My Political Trial and Experiences 

tributors to the Irish Relief Bazaar, of whom there were over 
sixty thousand and whose names and addresses after six 
months clerical work had been transferred from the chance 
books to sixty thousand cards. She swore that I had not said 
one word against the draft that night, and that my remarks 
were in the way of thanking the Bazaar Workers for the splen- 
did service they had voluntarily performed. Although the 
newspapers had featured Mme. Gonzales' testimony with its 
damaging implications, they failed to feature the important 
evidence of Mrs. Brannigan, thus giving importance to the yarn 
of a confessed perjurer, a woman of bad character, but giv- 
ing scant notice to the mother of a boy who had died for his 
country — a woman of standing and repute. The direct ex- 
amination of Mrs. Brannigan by John O'Leary follows : 

Mrs. Frances Brannigan testified as follows : 

Q. What is your address, Mrs. Brannigan? A, 325 East 
43 rd Street. 

Q. You are a married woman? A. Yes. 

Q. You have children? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you have a son in the army? A. Yes, in the 69th; 
he was killed on the other side. 

Q. What happened to him? A. He was killed in action. 

Q. Mrs. Brannigan, you were one of the booth managers at 
the Irish Relief Fund Bazaar? A. Yes. 

Q. Which was held in October, 1916 ? A. Yes. 

Q. And subsequent to that bazaar you received a notice from 
me to attend at 715 Lexington Avenue? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you come there that night? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Will you tell the jury just what took place on that oc- 
casion? A, Well, the only thing I heard Mr. O'Leary say — 
he wrote a notice for us to go to the meeting — was that he 
wished to thank us, the managers of the booths, for the hard 
work done at the affair, and it was to get all the workers to- 
gether. 

Q. You mean Mr. Jeremiah A. O'Leary said that? A. Yes, 
Mr. Jeremiah said that. 



The Defense Opens 361 

Q. Do you remember if Mr, Jeremiah said anything about 
President Wilson being a king or monarch? A. No, sir; he 
never mentioned his name. 

Q. Do you remember whether Mr. O'Leary said that all our 
liberty had been taken away from us ? A. No, sir ; he did not, 

Q. Do you remember Mr, O'Leary saying he was a lawyer 
and knew what he was doing, and that everything was within 
the law or anything of that sort? A, No, sir. 

Q. Do you remember Mr. O'Leary saying an)rthing about 
our being subservient to the English King ? A. No, sir. 

Q. Do you remember Mr. O'Leary saying we could not win 
the war? A. No, sir; Mr. O'Leary did not say anything like 
that. 

Q. Do you remember Mr. O'Leary saying we were gathered 
there to fight conscription? A. No, sir; he did not say that. 

Q. Was there anything said about conscription at all? A. 
No, sir; nothing at all. 

Q. Now, Mrs. Brannigan, did you see any guards around or 
any attempt at secrecy? A. No, sir; there was not anybody 
there. 

Q. About how many people were there, according to your 
judgment? A. Well, I should think about, well, about 30 
women, if there was that, and all of them seemed to be the 
ones that worked at the bazaar. 

Q. Do you know whether the front door was open or not? 
A. Yes, sir ; it was open. 

Q. Do you know what the condition of the atmosphere was 
that night, or the temperature? A. Yes, it was very warm. 

Q. Do you remember that every window and door that 
could be opened was opened ? A. Yes, sir ; it was a very warm 
night and we had all the windows opened. 

Q. Do you remember when the speakers spoke, whether they 
spoke in whispers or in their natural voice? A. They spoke 
right out, so everybody could hear them. 

Q. Was anything said that evening about secrecy? A. No, 
sir. 



362 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Was anybody that you observed denied any admission 
that evening? A, No, sir. 

Q. Now, Mrs. Brannigan, were you in any conspiracy to ob- 
struct enlistments or recruiting or to interfere with the draft? 
A. No, sir. 

Q. Do you know that the government of the United States 
had put on a witness to that effect ? A. No, sir. 

Q. Well, they did. Now Mrs. Brannigan, how soon after 
your boy went to Europe was he killed, do you know? A. 
That is just a year ago now. 

Q. Was he one of the first men in his regiment to be killed ? 
A. Yes. 

Q. In the 69th New York? A. Yes. 

Q. Afterwards the 165th United States? A. Yes; he was 
one of the first. 

The second witness for the defense was a uniformed soldier 
named Mullens whose testimony the "New York Sun" called 
a "ten-strike" for the defense. Mullens, who was born and 
raised in England testified that he hated England, and yet 
volunteered in the United States Army because, after hearing 
me speak one night, he felt "a little cheap because he wasn't 
doing anything for the United States." The speech referred 
to was the Sulzer's Harlem River Casino speech upon which 
the Government relied to establish that I had attempted to 
create mutiny. Could any answer be more conclusive? Here 
was a soldier in uniform back from the war who had been in- 
spired to volunteer by what the Government held was mutinous 
and disloyal. Mullens stated that he had given up a position 
paying thirty-five dollars a week and left a dependent mother 
without support, in order to volunteer. He also declared that 
he was above the draft age. The government was hurt badly 
by this testimony, and Mr. Osborne tried to shake it but in 
vain. Cross-examination only served to strengthen it. 

Next came George O'Neill, of a machine gun squad, a clean 
cut lad also attired in uniform. O'Neill, likewise contradicted 
the Government's witnesses in regard to my Harlem speech. 
He stated that he read "Bull," liked it and agreed with every 



The Defense Opens 363 

word it contained. He said that he wanted Ireland free and 
hated England for American reasons. He said that he was 
an admirer and follower of mine, and that if I said "Mutiny !" 
he would mutiny. For two hours Mr. Osborne tried to shake 
him but his efforts were fruitless. Quietly, and in the most 
gentlemanly and soldierly manner, O'Neill met and parried all 
thrusts. On redirect examination O'Neil swore that some 
of the questions were insulting, as when Mr. Osborne asked, 
showing him a cartoon from "Bull," "Do you mean to say 
that you wouldn't take your gun and run if you saw that car- 
toon?" O'Neill answered, with heat and indignation, "Irish- 
men don't run." O'Neill also swore that if he had to fight with 
British redcoats he would feel like killing himself, "because 
he hated Great Britain, yet he was perfectly willing to fight 
and die for Uncle Sam." He said, "All Irish-American soldiers 
in my regiment wanted to see Ireland free.' O'Neill was fol- 
lowed by William Jennings Bryan McLoughlin, another uni- 
formed soldier, who contradicted the Gonzales woman flatly. 
He was cross-examined at length and made an excellent wit- 
ness for the defense. McLoughlin's testimony closed the third 
week of the case. 



XI 

A GRAVE OFFICIAL SCANDAL. 

Now came one of the big sensations of the trial. The de- 
fense called Dr. Perry Lichtenstein, a recognized drug expert 
who swore that Victorica, at the time she testified, could not 
tell the truth; that morphine addicts are liars; that they can- 
not be truthful, and that they lie "even when they are tell- 
ing the truth." He swore that the Department of Justice did 
wrong when, having Victorica under arrest for ten months, 
they fed her drugs instead of curing her, and that when she 
testified in court, after receiving an injection of morphine, she 
was worse and more unreliable than a drunken man. The 
witness further said that Victorica could have been cured in 
three weeks, and in nine months, under restraint restored to 
normal. He also swore that "drug addicts are absolutely under 
the control of the dispenser of the drug," and that they "would 
swear away anyone's life and liberty — even their own — for 
morphine." He further said that Victorica bore every evidence 
of control. This testimony regarding the chief witness for 
the prosecution in sensational treason cases created a great 
stir in the courtroom. A woman without conscience, without 
the ability to be truthful, with all moral background gone, 
capable of being faithless to her race as well as to herself, 
who had been used to hold Willard Robinson, John Gill, Mar- 
garet Sullivan and myself in jail for nine months, and now 
used in open court to persecute me, created a profound impres- 
sion. The jury was visibly horrified at the revelations contained 
in the physician's testimony. The court room was shocked, 
while Judge Hand listened with great interest. Mr. Osborne's 
cross-examination of Dr. Lichenstein was suggestively and 
significantly brief. This testimony left the Government with- 
out one witness whose credibility had not been successfully im- 
peached. 

364 



A Grave Official Scandal 365 

The use of Mme. Victorica as a witness was a judicial 
scandal. It developed at my trial that she never testified before 
any Grand Jury, and yet her statements were used as the basis 
for indictments by grand juries against American citizens — 
grand juries who never knew she was a morphine addict, 
and were not informed. It is the Government's duty to inform 
a grand jury that all medical authorities consider drug addicts 
unreliable and untruthful, habitual liars and deceivers. Indict- 
ments obtained upon the statements of drug addicts read to 
grand juries are very questionable and unreliable. In some 
jurisdictions, morphine addicts have been held absolutely ir- 
responsible for crime. The time may come when they may 
be actually barred from testifying. No court would permit an 
intoxicated witness to give evidence. Victorica swore she re- 
ceived an injection of morphine the morning she took the stand. 
Dr. Lichtenstein swore that when she gave evidence against 
me it was "the morphine that was talking." It was clearly 
just as reprehensible to permit a drug addict to bear witness 
against me as an intoxicated witness, but apparently anything 
went in my case to crucify me because I was an enemy of 
British propaganda, and an outspoken opponent not of Presi- 
dent Woodrow Wilson's "idealistic" utterances but his deeds. 

Dr. Lichtenstein is perhaps one of the most expert observers 
of drug addicts in the United States. His testimony was cor- 
roborated by Drs. Smith Ely Jellif^e, Abraham Jacobi, and 
Walter H. Conley, eminent and distinguished physicians as 
well as by all standard text books on the subject. These author- 
ities all agreed that a morphine addict is a habitual liar ; that 
by use of morphine he or she can be easily controlled and 
subject to suggestion. Drs. Lichtenstein and Conley testified 
-very emphatically that the Government's conduct in administer- 
ing morphine to Victorica while in custody and under coritr61, 
was "unprofessional," and opposed to all well-recognized prison 
methods. I quote from the testimony of Dr. Lichtenstein. 

By Mr. Felder — Q. What is your profession? A, I am a 
physician. 

Q. Of what college are you a graduate, or unlvjGrsity.? J^ 
'Cornell University, Medical College, '1910, 



366 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Please tell the jury what your specialty is? A. I spe- 
cialize in drug addiction, and also in mental diseases. 

Q. Are you associated with anyone at the present time, Doc- 
tor, in preparing or collating the laws about this subject? A. 
I am a member of the Committee on Drug Control of the City 
Magistrates and Justices of the State of New York. 

Q. Were you selected as an expert upon this subject to 
go upon that committee? A. X was. 

Q. What are the objects of that committee? A. To obtain 
some law for the State of New York to control drug addiction, 
to prevent the spread of drug addiction, 

Q. Do you occupy any official position in the City of New 
York at the present time ? A. I do. 

Q. State to the jury what that position is? A. I am at 
present the physician to the City Prison known as the Tombs, 
and also physician to the House of Detention. 

Q. Now, what, if any, experience have you had as a drug 
addict specialist ? A. I have treated approximately 12,000 cases. 

Q. During what period of time. Doctor? A. Within the 
last six years. 

Q. How many cases are under your care now? A. Ap- 
proximately twenty. 

Q. Doctor, I will ask you whether or not, in your experience 
in treating these 12,000 cases, did you have any under your 
care who had been addicted to the use of morphine for as 
long a period of time as twenty years ? A. I have. 

Q. Tell the jury what in your opinion as an expert the effect 
of the taking of one grain a day of morphine for twenty years? 
A. One of the most pronounced effects of the drug, when a 
person takes the drug for five years, ten years and twenty years 
is * * * that the effect upon the mentality becomes 
more pronounced. Every author upon the subject deals with 
that, and the statement is made that these people become 
habitual liars. The fact is that a statement has been made 
that this has become so generally recognized that they are said 
to He when they tell the truth. The reason for that is that there 



A Grave Official Scandal 367 

is absolute loss of self-control. In the first place, if a person 
had not lost that self-control, knowing the effects of the drug, 
he could have stopped taking that drug. But there is not an 
addict alive who can state that he ever got off that drug through 
his own will power; it is impossible for the addict to get off 
the drug from his own will power. Therefore, the effect upon 
the mentality, upon the centers of inhibition — that is the con- 
trolling center — is gone absolutely. These people will lie 
more particularly to get the drug, or if they know they may 
gain something by telling a lie, if they may gain a drug from 
some party by telling a lie, gain their object, attain some 
point they are after, they will lie. It is generally known that 
the moral sense is absolutely gone. 

Q. Let us take the case of a witness who had been taking 
the quantity of morphine I have described for twenty years. 
That witness is brought upon the witness stand under the in- 
fluence of morphine. I will ask you whether or not in your 
judgment as an expert, anything that that witness might say 
could be depended upon? A. Absolutely not. 

Q. Is it the morphine or the witness that is talking? A. It 
is really the morphine that is testifying. 

Q. By way of hypothesis, assume the following facts : That 
Marie de Victorica, a woman about forty years of age, began 
taking morphine about the age of twenty years; up to about 
April 25, 1918 had taken on the average of six or seven grains 
a day; that on April 25, she was taken to Bellevue Hospital, 
New York City, where it was found that parts of her body 
were covered with scars and abscesses and that she was suffer- 
ing from morphine poisoning; that at the hospital she was 
treated and for eight days was administered one eighth of one 
grain of morphine every three hours ; that despite this fact she 
had pains in the stomach, and that on one occasion she was 
found with her knee drawn up under her chin; that she re- 
peatedly asked for more morphine, and that she complained 
of pains in the region of the thorax, and that she was irritable ; 
that she was removed from the hospital in eight days, and 
that since that time she has been detained at the Waverly 



368 My Political Trial and Experiences 

House, Crittenden Home, and Ellis Island, and that since about 
May 3d, 1918, and up to February 10, 1919, she has been at- 
tended by a physician who has called daily, and that under the 
directions of said physician, she has been receiving according 
to her statement, about two grains of morphine a day. As- 
sume that this woman on February 10, 1919, testified about 
incidents, conversations and transactions which are alleged to 
have occurred during the months of January, February, March, 
April, May, June, July, August and September, 1917; assume 
also that before she testified she received an injection of mor- 
phine — what in your opinion, with reasonably certainty, would 
be the effects of the use of the morphine as I have described 
upon the mental condition of that witness? A. In my opinion 
this woman was not responsible the morning she was testifying. 
* * * Such people will commit crimes to- obtain the drug; 
will say anything to obtain the drug ; will admit any statement 
that anybody may make in order to obtain the drug. 

By Mr. Arthur O'Leary — Q. Is morphine a weak or a 
powerful drug? A. Morphine is a powerful drug. 

Q. Are morphine addicts liable to suggestion? A. They 
are very susceptible to all suggestions. A person may suggest 
a thing to them, and, if they think they are going to get the 
drug by following that suggestion, they will make any state- 
ment in order to obtain the drug. 

Q. Where a morphine addict is in custody, how long would 
it take ordinarily for treatment to get the addict off the drug ? 
A. A person taking the drug for twenty years should take, 
at the longest, about three weeks, at the utmost. I have had 
patients who have taken drugs for thirty-five years and have 
had mixed habits, that is, not only morphine or heroin, but 
cocaine, and those people have been taken off the drug so that 
they have had no craving for the drug in three weeks. 

Q. Is there any difference, in getting a drug addict off the 
drug, where the drug addict is in custody, and in a case 
where the drug addict is moving about freely and socially? 
A. The greatest difference in the world. 



A Grave Official Scandal 369 

Q. Explain that, please. A. It is impossible to get a person 
off the drug while they are at large, while they are walking 
around. * * * Every addict should be absolutely under 
control and their clothing should be searched, their letters 
must be watched every day, even the money that is sent to 
them must be tested so that it is not soaked in morphine. 
Every precaution must be taken because they will do anything 
to obtain the drug. 

Q. And doctor, where the drug addict is in custody or is 
in control of the authorities, will you explain the treatment, 
the nature and the circumstances that would get such a person 
off the drug in three weeks? A. The usual treatment given 
is known as the withdrawal treatment. * * * which 
should not take any longer than three weeks for a person tak- 
ing the drug for such a long period of time. 

Q. What period? A. Twenty years. The usual length of 
time required to take a person off the drug in a City Prison 
is from ten days to two weeks, but in cases where we have 
people who have been taking drugs for thirty-five years, such 
people require longer treatment, and require more drug to 
begin with, of course. 

Q. How long? A. About three weeks at the utmost. 

Q. At the City Prison, is it customary always to take ad- 
dicts off the drug ? A. It is. 

Q. At the City Prison it is not customary, is it to cater 
to the addicts by giving them the drug for months and months, 
say from April to the following February? A. We never do 
such a thing, never* 

Q. Is such treatment, as keeping a patient who is in close 
custody, on the drug from say April to February, regarded 
at the City Prison, good and proper treatment? A. Absolutely 
not good and proper, and I think it is unprofessional on the 
part of any physician to keep a person under the influence of 
a drug for so long a time. 

•(Madame Victorlca had been taking according to her statement eight 
grains a day for twenty years. While in custody the government was, accord- 
ing to her statement, administering two grains a day — conduct described by 
Dr. Lilchtensteln as unprofessional.) 



370 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. May I ask how many grains of morphine it would take 
to kill a person who has never used a drug? A. A half grain 
has been known to he sufficient to kill a person who has never 
used a drug. 

John D. Moore, former Conservation Commissioner of New 
York and the first National Secretary of the Friends of Irish 
Freedom, was almost a day on the stand. He made a strong 
witness for the defense, defending the right of men of Irish 
blood to agitate for Ireland's freedom. He related his study 
of the Espionage Law, and the report he made to me after 
consultations held with Senators and Congressmen in Wash- 
ington that it was not intended to interfere with the freedom of 
the press. With John Singleton, an uncle of mine from Glens 
Falls, and Michael and Harry Breen, cousins from the Adiron- 
dacks, I established a perfect alibi, to the effect that when Vic- 
torica, the dope fiend, swore that I met her and John T. Ryan 
at Long Beach in September, 1917, I was, as a matter of fact, 
in the Adirondack Mountains. When I declared to the court 
that the prosecution could verify this by scores of witnesses 
who saw me there, Mr. Osborne said : "The Government does 
not question the alibi." "In other words," I said, "you admit 
Victorica committed perjury?" "No, we don't," replied Mr. 
Osborne. Of course an irresponsible drug fiend could not com- 
mit perjury. 

Victorica had sworn that she met me and Ryan at Long 
Beach in September, 1917, and that her memory of that was 
better than her recollection of her alleged meeting with me 
and Robinson on July 7th. Thus the September meeting was 
shattered, and by her own testimony, also the July meeting, 
since her memory of the September meeting, now a conceded 
myth, was better than of the July affair. 

Several witnesses testified that I had induced men to enlist. 
David Sullivan, ex-feather-weight champion of the world, 
testified that I had urged him to join the Sixty-Ninth, and that 
he took with him five others, three of whom had since been 
killed in France. Charles D. Patterson told how I had induced 



A Grave Official Scandal 371 

him to place his son in the Sixty-Ninth Regiment in March, 
1917, and that the boy was in France. 

John Singleton, my imcle, swore his only two sons were in 
the Army in France, and that I had made a soldier out of his 
son, Jerry, when the latter was a boy of six years, and that I 
had drilled him so that when he became seventeen, and before 
the United States entered the war, he ran away from home 
and joined the army. Daniel J. Sheehan, a member of the 
New York Police force, who formerly belonged to the Com- 
pany of the Sixty-Ninth Regiment in which I was an officer, 
testified as to the part which I took in building up that or- 
ganization. He declared that my work in organizing the Regi- 
mental Athletic Association, persuading athletes to join, and 
in training soldiers like Lieut. Coleman Burns and Lieut. 
Richard Allen, (both of whom were in France) that this work 
in conjunction with Major Michael A. Kelly, recipient of the 
Distinguished Service Cross, for bravery, was responsible for 
rooting out much of the "dead wood" in the Regiment, filling 
it up with energetic young men and placing it in shape for 
service. When asked by Mr. Osborne how he happened to 
be a witness, Sheehan replied, "When I heard the defendant 
was charged with obstructing recruiting I knew the charge was 
false. I couldn't understand how a man who had done so 
much for the country could be in such a position. It's an out- 
rage." At this point the splendid fellow's voice broke and tears 
came to his eyes. Mr. Osborne pressed him no further. An- 
other incident in Sheehan's testimony amused Court and jury, 
when asked by me, "How did you happen to join the 69th 
Regiment?" He answered, "My father brought me up to fear 
God, love my country and hate England." 



XII 

MONSIGNOR POWER DEFENDS THE IRISH. 

Rev. Monsignor James W. Power, Pastor of All Saints 
Church, New York, for forty-eight years, next took the stand. 
He swore that he was a member of the American Truth So- 
ciety and reader of "Bull." He testified in great detail about 
what his parish had done, the soldiers it had sent to the 
front, the boys who had been killed or wounded; how his 
parishioners — all devoted to the freedom of Ireland — had done 
their share in the war, in buying Liberty Bonds and War Sav- 
ings Stamps, and in Red Cross work. He told about his par- 
ochial school, run by the Irish Christian Brothers, where 
more than 2,500 children are taught to be Americans first, 
but are also taught the Irish language, history, dancing, music 
and spirit, and how all these had helped to make them better 
Americans. Father Power vouched emphatically for my pa- 
triotism and character. He answered with great emphasis, 
saying "Never, never," when asked if the Irish in New York 
ever conspired against the draft, remarking, "They did their 
duty one hundred per cent." He declared unequivocally that 
he favored Irish freedom and blamed the press for much of 
the hostility of Irish Americans towards England. The testi- 
mony of Monsignor Power was very effective, and as he left 
the stand, he was followed by the gaze of the jury, which 
watched him with interest until he passed out of the courtroom. 
Monsignor Power's testimony I quote in full as a matter of 
public interest, in order that the American people may know 
that by actual test a Catholic congregation, educated to revere 
human freedom, became a powerful organization for intense 
war work. This testimony is a complete answer to the cam- 
paign carried on before and during the war by those who 
actually believed that hyphenated Americanism, so-called, was 
a menace to the United States. 

372 



Monsignor Power Defends the Irish 373 

Monsignor Power's testimony proves that sympathy for 
Ireland and hatred of England in no way interfered with 
an Irish American's love for the United States. Father Power 
is one of the most noted and active devotees of Irish freedom 
in the United States. His testimony created a sensation at 
the trial. It proved what powerful engines of patriotism 
Catholic parishes were during the war. Very few Americans 
realize just how much our Catholic parishes did during the 
conflict. The Monsignor was one of my warmest friends. 
His testimony follows: 

By Mr. Jeremiah A. O'Leary — Q. I have called you ''Father" 
Power. Your real title is "Monsignor," is it not? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. I beg your pardon. A. It is not necessary. 

Q. I have always called you Father? A. Father is more 
familiar. 

Q. What church are you the pastor of? A. All Saints. 

Q. How long have you been the pastor of All Saints Church 
in this city, about? A. About 48 years. 

Q. Where is it located? A. 129th Street and Madison 
Avenue. 

Q. Have you a school there for the education of children? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. A parochial school? A. Yes, and a high school, too. 

Q. And how many children, Father, are educated by your 
parish in that school? A. About 2,200. 

Q. Are you a member of the National Executive Committee 
of the Friends of Irish Freedom? A. I am. 

Q. And have you been such a member ever since the organi- 
zation came into existence? A. Yes. 

Q. Is there, throughout the city among people of Irish blood 
and amongst others, a general feeling that Ireland should be 
free? A. Positively. 

Q. And so far as you know in your 48 years of experience 
up there as a pastor and m^oving around amongst the people of 
the city, has there been a feeling amongst the people all during 
that time that Ireland should be a free country? A. Yes. 



374 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. A great many people of your parish are of Irish extrac- 
tion ? A. A great many. 

Q. And there are a great many others who are not? A. Yes, 

sir. 

Q. Do you remember, an organization that used to meet 
in one of your halls up there called "The Harlem Gaelic 
Society" ? A. Yes. 

Q. Was it in connection with that, that you first met me? 
A. Yes. 

Q. About how many years ago was that? A. Nearly 20 
years ago. 

Q. They used to teach the Irish language up there? A. You 
were a boy then. 

Q. Yes ; I was starting in at law school. A. Starting in at 
college. 

Q. They used to teach the Irish language up there in that 
society? A. Tried to. 

Q. You speak Irish? A. I do. 

Q. On St. Patrick's night, every St. Patrick's night, they 
always had a public affair in your church hall that was attended 
by — A. We have a play. 

Q. And you also ran your Irish plays in Irish ? A. In Irish. 

Q. And your students up there took part in those? A. Yes. 

Q. And so far as your parish was concerned it was always 
devoted, was it not, to Irish ideals, plays, history, language, 
songs, music, dancing and all those kinds of things? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. Your parish I suppose had its service flag? A. Yes. 

Q. And children of the fathers and mothers who used to go 
to these Irish affairs, that used to attend the Harlem Gaelic 
Society affairs, did they volunteer and respond to the draft 
in the late war? A. Volunteered. 

Q. And did you have more volunteers than drafted men, 
or what is your opinion? A. I think they were nearly all volun- 
teers, the whole five hundred. 

Q. Did you find the Irish spirit in the parish was destructive 



Monsignor Power Defends the Irish 375 

in any way of love of country on the part of the Irish in 
America f A. No, sir. 

Q. What did you find was the result of it? A. They sub- 
scribed most generously to all the war loans and to the Knights 
of Columbus subscriptions, to the war savings stamps ; I think 
for the Knights of Columbus war service collection we gave 
$27,000 ; for the four Liberty loans we subscribed $93,000 ; the 
children of our school have war savings stamps of over ten 
thousand dollars. 

Q. While all these things were going on, while you were 
working up the Liberty loans, and while you were selling war 
savings stamps and while you were working up the Knights 
of Columbus fund, and while the boys were going to war, did 
the feeling that Ireland should be free persist amongst your 
people? A. Most decidedly. 

Q. Is it not a fact that at these meetings, where the ques- 
tion of Irish freedom was discussed, there was also, and neces- 
sarily, a discussion of the tyranny of England and the denuncia- 
tion of England for such tyranny? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Have you ever found in that parish from your observa- 
tion that the discussion of such questions, the denunciation of 
England, in any way dissipated the loyalty or the patriotism 
of your people towards the United States f A. Not at all. 

Q. Have they been able in this war to draw a line of dis- 
tinction between their love for America and their hatred of 
England? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How many stars did you have in your service flag up 
there ? A. That I forget now. 

Q. About. A, What do you mean by stars? Deaths, 
wounded ? 

Q. Well, for every boy in the parish who went to the war? 
A. Oh, we have over five hundred. 

Q. Did you have any boys in your parish killed ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Wounded ? A. There were seven killed. 

Q. Some wounded ? A. A great many wounded. 

Q. And were these boys interested in the question of Irish 
freedom f A. Very much. 



376 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. This school you have there, who were the teachers? A. 
They are Irish Christian Brothers. 

Q. Those brothers are a different order from the brothers 
who, for instance, teach at Manhattan College? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. They are an order founded in Ireland? A. Yes; their 
mother house is in Ireland. 

Q. Is it not a fact that they are strongly Irish, that they 
inculcate the spirit of Irish freedom along with everything 
else they teach them ? A. It is always subservient to American 
nationality, of course. 

Q. America first, hut they never forget the land of their 
ancestors? A. Never. 

Q. What has been the effect of such teaching on the chil- 
dren of your parish ? Has it made them better or worse young 
men and young women? A. Better young men and young 
women ; respect for their race always makes them better. 

Q. Edmund Burke says: "He who will not look back on 
his ancestors will never look forward to posterity." A. Yes. 

Q. In other words, if you do not respect your father you 
cannot respect your children ? A. No. 

Q. Do you remember a meeting of the Executive Committee 
of the Friends of Irish Freedom that was held at the Murray 
Hill Hotel on the 25th of August, 1917, at which a resolu- 
tion was introduced by Judge Edward J. Gavegan* with refer- 
ence to the street meetings that were held at 37th and Broad- 
way? A. I do. 

Q. Do you recollect that there was a resolution offered 
by Judge Gavegan, seconded by myself, to the effect that those 
meetings should be held, but held within the law? A. Yes. 

O. There was a great deal of newspaper discussion about 
those meetings at that time? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And when the Executive Committee met did they take 
up the subject very seriously? A. Very seriously. 

Q. And did they get reports on the meetings from people 
who attended them as to the speeches that were made and the 
character of the speeches? A. Yes. 

Q. And did the Friends of Irish Freedom executive com- 



•Justlce of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, 



Monsignor Power Defends the Irish 377 

mittee examine those speeches and examine that data and 
information with a view of ascertaining whether or not any- 
thing was done or said at those meetings which in any way 
violated American law or digressed from the duties that are 
prescribed by devotion to the United States? A. Yes, they 
examined them. 

Q. And what did they find as a result of their examination ? 
A. They found nothing against American loyalty or sense of 
duty or citizenship. 

Q. Did they find that the stories that were published about 
them by the newspapers were in the main false? A. In the 
main false, yes. 

Q. The Friends of Irish Freedom held a convention in 
Philadelphia only last week? A. Yes. 

Q. And are they open meetings open to the public? A. 
Absolutely open. 

Q. There is no secrecy about them ? A. No secrecy. 

Q. Any agent of the government, any newspaper reporter, 
any individual that wants to make observations as to how they 
are conducted, what is done at them, is invited there to see? 
A. Yes. 

Q. Has there ever been any secrecy, so far as you have ob- 
served, about any of these meetings? A. Never. 

O. Hasn't it been on the contrary the policy of the Friends 
of Irish Freedom to make their meetings as public as possible ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And the difficulty has been they could not make them 
public enough on account of the newspaper opposition to the 
society? A. Yes. 

Q. There has been a great deal of bitterness on the part 
of people of Irish extraction in this city against the newspapers 
on account of their attitude toward the Friends of Irish Free- 
dom and these meetings ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And naturally, from this bitterness there has sprung 
too much acrimony on the part of our people towards the news- 
papers and on the part of the newspapers against our people ? 
A. Yes. 



378 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Has that attitude of the newspapers increased or dimin- 
ished the bitterness of the Irish people of this City towards 
England? A. It has increased it; they believe it is English 
propaganda. 

Q. In other words, if the newspapers would leave our people 
alone, the bitterness they feel against England would die out 
or abate to a great extent? A. It would abate to a great 
extent. 

Q. The Irish character when it is attacked responds to 
the attack? A. I think so. 

Q. Would the Executive Committee of the Friends of Irish 
Freedom permit or tolerate during the war any speeches or 
any meetings that could be calculated to create mutiny or 
resistance to duty or anything of that kind? A. They would 
not. 

Q. Were they most careful all during the war to guide and 
direct our people to draw a line between their hatred for 
England and their love for the United States, and their duty 
to military service? A, After war was declared, as well as 
I remember, at all the meetings the sentiment was America 
first and put everything else aside until the issue was decided. 
That was the conclusion which I think was made at the meeting 
you referred to — the meeting at the Murray Hill Hotel*. 
Stop Irish and stop Ireland and everything else and fight for 
America until the issue was decided; we all agreed to that 
positively. 

Q. Up to that time there had been a lot of confusion as 
to what the policies of different societies would be? A. Yes. 

Q. And that meeting was called for the purpose of deciding 
it ? A. Yes ; putting a stop to everything except America and 
her interests until the war was finished. I made a speech my- 
self on that occasion to that effect. 

Q. Yes, and I remember the speech very well. Was this 
convention that was held the other day, which demanded the 
freedom of Ireland, held as a result of a policy adopted at 



*It wag at this meeting that the Government charged that a treasonable 
plot had been formed. 



Monsignor Power Defends the Irish 379 

that meeting- at the Murray Hill Hotel on the 25th of August, 
1917, to lay aside everything, do our duty, show what we can 
do, and then after we had demonstrated to our country our 
devotion to it, to demand that our country do justice to Ireland ? 
A. Yes. 

Q. That was the policy ? A. That was the policy. 

Q. And now that the Irish in America have done it, the 
Irish in America demand that justice be done in Ireland? A. 
Yes, sir, that is the policy. 

Q. You have a very intimate knowledge, have you not, of 
the workings of Irish societies ? A. Yes. 

Q. You know the Irish leaders and know what they are 
thinking about? A. Yes. 

Q. And know what they are doing? A. Yes. 

Q. Know what their policies are? A. Yes. 

Q. Did you ever know or ever hear of any movement on 
the part of bazaar workers at the Irish Relief Bazaar, after 
the bazaar was held and in the summer of 1917, to organize a 
conspiracy* against the draft law? A. Never. 

Q. Would the Irish people in this city have tolerated such 
an act of lawlessness? A. They would not. 

Q. Were there some bazaar workers from your parish ? A. 
I happened to be sick at that time for three months; I think 
there were, yes. 

Q. Have you a branch of the Friends of Irish Freedom in 
your parish? A. Yes, Innisfail Branch. I was sick in the 
hospital at that time unfortunately. I sent my subscription; 
that was all I could do. 

Q. You were a member of the American Truth Society? A. 
I was. 

Q. You were also a contributor to itf A. I was. 

Q. Were you born in Ireland? A. I was. 

Q. Where were you educated in Ireland? A. Mount Met- 
ier ay. My education was partly in Ireland and partly here. 
I did my theological study here in America. 



♦The Government charged that a conspiracy was entered Into on this 
occasion. 



380 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. You have been closely associated with the late Cardinal 
Farley? A. Yes. 

Q. And with what we might call the hierarchy of the 
Church here, the bishops and monsignors? A. Yes. 

Q. They have conclaves from time to time, have they not? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You attend those conclaves? A. Yes. 

Q. The Catholic priest in the city here that is the pastor of 
a church, exercises great control, doesn't he, over the parishion- 
ers? A. Yes. 

Q. Did the Catholic priests in this city in the late war make 
every effort to inspire their flocks with patriotism? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. And were they desirous to do military duty? A. Yes, 
sir. I think they were ultra- American, if anything. 

Q. Were you at the April 8th, 1917 meeting at Carnegie 
Hall, Easter Week? A. I think I was, yes. 

Q. Do you remember that Father Duffy, the Chaplain of the 
69th Regiment, spoke at that meeting? A. Yes. 

Q. Who else spoke at it? A. Judge Cohalan spoke there. 

Q. And Judge Goff ? A. Judge Goff. 

By Mr. Felder — Q. Monsignor, how long have you known 
the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary? A. About twenty years. 

Q. How intimately have you known him? A. Very in- 
timately, I should say ; he was in my parish three or four years 
after leaving college. 

Q. He was your parishioner ? A. I do not think he was my 
parishioner as far as territory goes, but he used to come to 
church there. 

Q. Have you known him, Monsignor, intimately, you say 
for twenty years? A. From that time up, yes. 

Q. What is his general reputation and character for truth 
and veracity? A. Excellent. 

Q. What is his general character in the community in which 
he resides ? A. A model man, 

Mr. Felder— That is all. Mr. Osborne— That is all. 




Daniel O'Leary, His Father. 



XIII 

DEFENDANT'S FATHER A WITNESS. 

With the exception of certain government witnesses, per- 
haps no one who testified received more newspaper attention 
than my father, Daniel O'Leary. Good taste compels me to 
refrain from writing a description of him upon the stand or 
the effect his testimony created. He received respectful at- 
tention from the jurors except Foreman Hunter. I was proud 
of the account which he gave of himself and I feel certain 
that others who heard him were also favorably impressed. He 
was not cross-examined. Perhaps, discretion dictated this 
clever attitude of Mr, Osborne. I am sure my father regretted 
that he was not, because he told me he would have enjoyed it. 
His testimony concerning the fighting qualities of the O'Leary 
clan, follows: 

By Mr. Felder — Q. Mr. O'Leary, what relation are you to 
the defendant in this case, Jeremiah O'Leary ? A. His father. 

Q. How many children have you ? A. Had eight born to us, 
seven of them living. 

Q. How are they divided in respect of sex? A. Five boys 
and three girls. 

Q. Can you tell the jury the ages of the five boys, and their 
names ? A. John is the eldest, he is about thirty-nine. Jerry is 
the second eldest, he is 37, Arthur is about two years younger 
than Jerry, Daniel comes next, nearly two years; then there 
is a girl in between, the girl that died ; then Alexis, he is the 
youngest boy. Then there are two girls Marguerite and Alice. 

Q. What position do you occupy, if any ? A. I am employed 
in the State Department of Labor. 

Q. How long have you occupied that position? A. The 
present position since 1899. 

Q. Is that appointive or elective? A. This was appointive. 

381 



382 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. By whom ? A. By the head of the Department. Prior to 
that time I was at the head of the Department as its chief. 

Q. And you have held that position during several admin- 
istrations, both Republican and Democratic? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Who appointed you originally? A. Governor Morton. 

Q. Governor Morton, who was afterwards Vice-President 
of the United States ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You have been successively appointed by both Democrats 
and Republicans as they alternated? A. My appointments all 
came from Republicans. 

Q. Are you a Republican or Democrat? A. I am a Repub- 
lican. I have served under Governors Black and Roosevelt 
and knew them personally. 

Q. Governor Dix ? A. I occupied my present position when 
Governor Dix was Governor ; I knew him personally as a boy 
because we grew up in the same town together. 

Q. What is the occupation, Mr. O'Leary, or profession of 
these several sons of yours? A. Three of them are lawyers. 
Jeremiah is a lawyer, Arthur is a lawyer, Dan is a doctor and 
Alexis is an engineer. 

Q. Are your two daughters married or single? A. Single. 

Q. Have they any occupations ? A. School teachers. 

Q. Where do they teach, Mr. O'Leary? A. One of them 
here in the City, and the other one over in Pennsylvania. 

Q. In the public schools or private schools? A. One is a 
public and the other private. 

Q. One is a teacher in the high schools of the City of New 
York? A. Yes. 

Q. And the other teaches in Pennsylvania, in a private 
school? A, She is in the High School in Pennsylvania, yes. 

Q. Where were you born, Mr. O'Leary? A. Glens Falls, 
New York. 

Q. Where was your wife born ? A. In Ireland. 

Q. Are you of Irish extraction? A. My father and mother 
both came from Ireland. 

Q. And settled in this country about how long ago ? A. Well, 



Defendant's Father a Witness 383 

relatives of the family have been here since between 1760 
and 1770. 

Q. What is the your age, Mr. O'Leary? A. Sixty-six. 

Q. Speaking about your father, Mr. O'Leary, was he a fol- 
lower and a supporter of Abraham Lincoln? A. It is pretty 
hard for me to speak about my own father in that respect. He 
was as thoroughly American as any man that ever breathed. 
He was a man that was largely read ; he made a study of his- 
tory, and a particular study of the history of this country. He 
told me, and I have a record of a relative — I do not know the 
degree — who came to this country between 1760 and 1770; 
he is recorded among the Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolu- 
tion in Massachusetts. His name was James McCarthy; a 
granduncle who came to this country, I don't know the date, 
but he was here during 1812. My mother told me about a 
brother, Thomas Flynn, who fought in the Mexican War in 
1848 or 1847. 

Q. I wanted to find out how many of you fought say in the 
Civil War? A. In the Civil War. I will explain. Colonel, 
that my mother was married twice. Her first husband's name 
was Farrell. In the Civil War I had three brothers and two 
first cousins, and all of them were killed. 

Q. Where were they killed ? A. Well, I cannot give you the 
battles. 

Q. How many brothers did you have? A. There were six- 
teen in my mother's family. 

Q. And three of them were killed fighting those Southern 
rebels. What about the others ? A. I only knew four brothers. 

Q. You were not old enough to get into that scrap? A. No, 
I was quite small at that time. Those names. Colonel, are all 
recorded on the Soldiers' Monument in Glens Falls — Dennis 
O'Leary, Patrick Farrell, Jerry Farrell, Dennis Corbett, who 
was my aunt's son, and Arthur O'Leary, who was my uncle's 
son. 

Q. Are you any kin to that O'Leary who fought in the 
Revolutionary War whose name is written in the history of 



384 My Political Trial and Experiences 

this country ? A. That one there, James McCarthy, is recorded ; 
that is the only one we can find. 

Q. What kin were you to him? A. My father claimed him 
as a cousin. 

Q. He was a relation of yours, one of your ancestors? A. 
Yes. 

Q. And refreshing your memory by referring to that slip, 
did he take a little part in the Boston Tea Party? A. Yes, 
he is recorded there as under the command of Nathaniel 
Barbour. 

O. Just read and see what his record is there as taken from 
that history ? A. This is taken from the Massachusetts Record 
of the Soldiers and Sailors in the War of the Revolution, 
Volume 10, page 421 : "J^^^^s McCarthy, list of men mustered 
by Nathaniel Barbour, muster master of Suffolk County, dated 
Boston, February 2, 1777. Captain Joseph Williams' Company, 
Colonel John Creighton's Regiment." 

Q. Mr. O'Leary, after the War of the Revolution ended, 
the next war in which we participated was the War with Eng- 
land in 1812. Do you happen to know the particular thing that 
provoked that war was the fact that England insisted upon 
searching our vessels and taking therefrom men whom she 
called her subjects? A. I have read of it. 

Q. Did you have any relative in that war fighting for this 
country? A. I have only what my father claimed, that he had 
a granduncle, Daniel O'Leary. 

Q. Then we had a little scrap with Mexico in 1848. A. My 
mother told me that her brother, Thomas Flynn — her maiden 
name was Flynn — was on our side in the Mexican War. 

Q. Was he killed? A. I could not tell. 

Q. Who was the last of your father's family to leave Ireland ? 
A. He, himself. 

Q. They all had come, the immediate family had come over 
before your father came? A. The family from the eldest to 
the youngest were driven out. 

Q. How did your family come to leave Ireland? A. They 



Defendant's Father a Witness 385 

were driven out by oppressive laws ; some went to Australia ; 
most of them came to this country. 

Q. Where did those who came to this country settle? A. 
One of them settled in Vermont in 1826 or 1828. He later 
moved to Glens Falls, where there was also settled another 
brother, Arthur O'Leary, and a sister, a Mrs. Corbett. 

Q. What about James O'Leary ? A. Arthur was the brother ; 
James was the son of Arthur. 

Q. Did you have a first cousin named Norah O'Leary ? A. 
Yes. 

Q. Did she have a brother in the Union Army ? A. She had 
a brother. 

Q. What regiment was he with ? A. I could not tell you the 
regiment, but I tried to tell you a moment ago that he was 
killed in the Civil War. 

(He fought in Meagher's Brigade with the 69th Regiment.) 

Q. The next war following the Civil War in which we par- 
ticipated was the War of 1898 with Spain. Was your family 
represented in that struggle, Mr. O'Leary? A. My wife's 
family was. 

Q. Well, that is your son's family, isn't it? A. Yes. 

Q. Jerry's family? A. Yes. 

Q. Who were they? A. Jeremiah Moynihan. 

Q. What kin was he to the defendant? A. He was his 
uncle, my wife's brother. 

Q. Do you happen to know whether or not he was wounded 
at the Battle of Santiago? A. He was wounded at the Battle 
of Santiago ; after receiving his wound, he stopped at our house 
for quite some time. 

Q. Had he recovered from his wound when he stopped at 
your house ? A. Very largely. 

Q. Did the defendant Jeremiah O'Leary have any other 
relatives in the Spanish- American War that you recall? A. 
We had relatives throughout the West. 

Q. The Expeditionary Force that participated in that war 
was very small? A. Yes, sir. 



386 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. And raised by the volunteer system, and each State was 
called upon to raise two or three regiments ? A. That is right. 

Q. Now then, Mr. O'Leary, after that, the next war in which 
this Government participated was the war against the Im- 
perial German Government. I will ask you to name all the 
members of your family and your wife's family and the rela- 
tions of the defendant Jeremiah A. O'Leary, who participated 
in that war ? 

Mr. OLeary answered this question by giving the following 
list — thirty-five. 

Brothers : *Lieut. Arthur T. O'Leary, Aviation, N. Y. City ; 
*Alexis F. O'Leary, Private, N. Y. City. 

1st Cousins: *Jeremiah Singleton, Artillery, Glens Falls; 
*Robert Singleton, Observation, Glens Falls; *Dr. John H. 
Linehan, Medical, Glens Falls; *Jeremiah Linehan, Navy, 
Glens Falls; 

Cousins : *Lieut, Frank Buckley, Artillery, Portland, Ore. ; 
*Dr. John Buckley, Medical, Portland, Ore. ; fRobert Buckley, 
Machine Gun, Glens Falls, (wounded) ; fjohn O'Neil, Private, 
Mamaroneck, N. Y. ; f Joseph McLoughlin, Private, Mamaro- 
neck, N. Y. ; fEdward Buckley, Private, St. Paul, Minn.; 
f John Haines, Private, Yonkers, N. Y., f Alexis Moynihan, 
Private, N. Y. City; fDaniel Moynihan, Private, N. Y. City; 
fDaniel O'Connor, Private, N. Y. City; fJohn O'Connor, Pri- 
vate, Holyoke, Mass; *Warren McCarthy, Private, Haverhill, 
Mass. ; *Lawrence McCarthy, Private, Haverhill, Mass. ; fEdw- 
O'Neill, Private, Newark, N. J. ; fAndrew Moynihan, Private, 
N. Y. City ; fAndrew O'Connor, Private, Holyoke, Mass. ; 
t Jas. O'Connor, Private, Holyoke, Mass. ; *Lieut. Edward 
Fitzgerald, Navy, Newburyport, Mass. ; *David Fitzgerald, 
Navy, Newburyport, Mass. ; fThos. B. Downey, Private, 
Glens Falls ; *Thos. J. McDonald, Private, Glens Falls ; *Thos. 
A. Wilkins, Ft. Edward, N. Y.; *Capt. Wm. Fitzgerald, In- 
fantry, Ft. Edward, N. Y. ; f Joseph Roach, Private, Chicago, 
111. ; t Patrick Evans, Private, N. Y. City (wounded) ; fJohn 



♦Volunteer. 
tDrafted. 



Defendant's Father a Witness 387 

Doody, Private, N. Y. City ; *Eugene Cashman, Private, N. Y. 
city (killed) ; *Wm. F. Burns, Artillery, La Junta, Colo. 
fDennis Moynihan, Private, N. Y. City. 

Q. I want you to tell the jury, Mr. O'Leary, whether or 
not the defendant has any male relative within the draft age 
who is not now and who was not in the army so far as your 
investigations have extended ? A. I don't know of any. Colonel. 

Q. You don't know of a single, solitary one? A. No, sir. 

Q. Tell the jury whether or not, Mr. O'Leary, every man 
whose name you have mentioned was of !Irish extraction? A. 
Every one of them. 

Q. Tell the jury whether or not, in addition to being related 
to the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, they were friends of 
his, mixed and mingled with him and discussed the various 
problems growing out of the war and developed by it? A. 
Those that were here in the City, yes ; there were some of them 
removed that he could not meet, of course. 

Q. Outside of those who volunteered, tell this jury whether 
or not a single solitary one of those men kin to this defendant 
and his friends, resisted the draft? A, I have not any knowl- 
edge of anything of the kind. 

Q. Did you ever hear one of them resisting it ? A. I did not. 

Q. Do you happen to know whether any of them ever read 
"Bull"? A. Some of them I presume, did. 

Q. Do you know whether they heard the public speeches 
of the defendant? A. I could not say that; probably some of 
them have. 

Q. Did you ever hear any of them discuss the question of 
Irish freedom with the defendant? A, No, I do not know 
as I have, except where it was talked in my own house. 

Q. Were they friends, admirers and followers of the de- 
fendant Jeremiah A. O'Leary, any or all of them? A. I think 
without an exception I might say yes. I wish, Colonel, to also 
say that this list is not yet complete; we are making it up, 
and we are getting information from every source we can for it. 



388 My Political Trial and Experiences 

My own daughter offered her services to the Red Cross, but 
for some reason or other she was not accepted. 

Q. Do you know whether she was rejected because she was 
a sister of the defendant or not? A. I would not like to say 
that ; but that was largely our opinion. 

Q. Mr. O'Leary, in addition to the military duties devolving 
upon the citizens of this country, there were certain civic duties 
that were just as important and just as high a type of patriot- 
ism, such as buying War Savings Stamps, Liberty Bonds, aid- 
ing the Red Cross in its activities, and the Jewish Societies 
and the Catholic Societies that were organized to furnish ladies 
to nurse soldiers and to provide comforts for them. I will ask 
you to state whether or not you know anything that this de- 
fendant may have done in regard to buying Liberty Bonds, 
War Savings Stamps or making contributions to the Red Cross, 
or any other of these civic societies?* A, I know that he 
bought bonds, I know that his wife bought bonds. 

Q. Do you know that your son John O'Leary bought bonds ? 
A. Every one of my children, without an exception bought 
bonds — every one of them. 

Q. I want you to tell this jury, Mr. O'Leary, whether or not 
any man, woman or child, whether nearly or closely related 
to the defendant Jeremiah O'Leary, or distantly, shirked any 
military or civic duty devolving upon that family? A, So far 
as my knowledge would lead me to answer, no, not one of 
them. I want to say further. Colonel, that my wife and my 
two daughters constantly worked on Red Cross work during 
the entire war ; they knitted sweaters, socks ; they did all that 
kind of work constantly ; worked even on Sunday. 

Q, Do you happen to know, Mr. O'Leary, whether any utter- 
ance, printed or verbal, ever made by the defendant, Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary, had the effect of creating mutiny or insubordina- 
tion, or of interfering with recruiting and enlistments, either 
in the army or the navy of the United States ? A. They could 
not, because he was always in favor of it. I have discussed 



*I sold my home at a loss of $6,500 and turned the proceeds into Liberty 
Bonds. 



Defendant's Father a Witness 389 

more than once with the defendant the question of a stand- 
ing army ; he was always in favor of a large standing army and 
a large navy. He was always in favor of the training of the 
youth of this country in military tactics ; his opinion was that 
they should be trained from the time they went in the primary 
grades, until they left the college or whatever part of the 
school they came out of. 

Q. Carrying out his own notions and his own ideas about 
military preparedness, did he as a boy select the school that 
he attended ? A. I do not know of any place that he ever got 
in with a bunch of boys that he did not have them training; 
if he had a baseball club, he had them trained to soldiers before 
he got through with them. 

Q. Did he select and go to school at the Christian Brothers 
Military Academy ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How long was he there? A. Whatever length of time 
they required to secure a graduation. 

Q. He was an officer there, was he, and trained the boys? 
A. Yes ; every one of the boys had military training, as far as 
schooling was concerned. 

Q. I will ask you now to state to the jury whether or not in 
any discussion with these various young men in the family 
circle or elsewhere when you were present you heard the 
defendant Jeremiah O'Leary advise, admonish or intimate to a 
single solitary one of them that they should shirk — to any of 
his kinfolks, men or women — that they should shirk in connec- 
tion with this war, any duty, either military or civic ? A. Never 
did ; on the contrary he always urged them to go forward. 

Q. Urged them to go forward and fight for their country? 
A. It was at his urging that my daughter Margaret made her 
application to the Red Cross for overseas work. 

Q. From childhood up, what was the trend of your son's 
mind in regard to studying the history of his country and the 
Irish question and the Constitution of the United States ? Was 
he studious, and what particular things did he study ? A. He 
was, from the earliest days, when he attended school, always 



390 My Political Trial and Experiences 

very studious and very apt. My father lived with me from 
the time that I was married in 1878 until he died at the age of 
88 years in 1893, and I might put it in a homely way that he 
was almost a nurse to the older boys. He was a very kindly 
old man ; he loved those children ; was very kind to them and 
they seemed to adore him, because they stayed with him even 
when they had every chance to play; they would rather sit 
down and listen to the old man tell his stories. When they 
were babies he would rock them in their cradle ; coming along 
when they were able to walk, they were alongside of him all 
the while. I think probably outside of their mother's voice, 
the first voice they heard was his, and the first tune he ever 
taught them was "Yankee Doodle." He would sing that to 
them and rock them to sleep on it. This boy was a particular 
favorite of his. My father and my mother suffered terribly 
under English rule ; they were driven from their homes ; their 
family scattered; their children died on the way over from 
exposure. Those things rankled in his mind always ; he never 
tired of telling that story to his grandchildren, as he had told it 
to me, repeatedly. They were driven from their own land 
against their will and against their consent to this country 
as paupers and beggars almost. If they had not friends here 
they would have been beggars. 

Q. And he told your sons and children that story? A. 
Repeatedly. The country where we lived. Colonel, was filled 
with historical interest. We had our Saratoga, Lake Cham- 
plain and Ticonderoga; we had Lake George and Bloody 
Pond ; we had Jane McCrea, we had all these associations ; we 
lived right amongst them. I knew the old man to take this 
boy down to Fort Edward, five miles away, to show him the 
spot where Jane McCrea was scalped. He would take them 
up to Bloody Pond and show them the historical spots. There 
is a place in Glens Falls, at the Falls itself, that is historical, 
made so by Cooper's Tale of the "Last of the Mohicans." 
He would take them down there and show them tha.t, and 
tell them all about it. He would tell them all the stories of 
historical matters about American history and about the do- 



Defendant's Father a Witness 391 

ings in the war and the sufferings of Washington and his sol- 
diers. Those stories were ever in his mind and he imparted 
them to those children, constantly day in and day out. They 
could not have a disloyal thought in their minds ; it was never 
taught to them by my father nor by me nor by their mother 
nor by anybody else. 

Q. Did this old grandfather teach them to be disloyal or 
unpatriotic to this country ? A. I guess not. 

Q. He was thoroughly saturated with patriotism? A. Ab- 
solutely. 

Q. And he took very great interest in American politics? 
A. Absolutely. 

Q. Now, starting at that time, with the lessons that the de- 
fendant learned at his grandfather's knees, and upon his knees, 
did this defendant start to read the history of this country 
and its constitution and the Life of Washington and Jefferson 
and Lincoln ? A. He was always searching for information of 
that kind. This boy would not allow any light literature in 
the house ; he would quarrel with his brothers, if he found them 
reading every day novels. 

Q. He would not let them read Jack Harkaway among the 
savages? A. No; he would drive them out. He didn't want 
them in the house for himself and he hated to see any of his 
brothers having such books in their hands. 

Q. I will ask you to state to the jury whether or not this 
defendant from childhood has been an upright, honorable, 
straightforward, pious young man — boy and man — was he 
sober ? A, Always the best ; always an obedient child, always 
attentive, always good. I want to say to you and to this court 
and this jury that I do not think any father could have a better 
son than he. 

Q. Was he sober, Mr. O'Leary? A. We were a little tem- 
perance community in ourselves. 

Q. Did you ever drink liquor yourself? A. Never. 

Q. Did the defendant Jeremiah O'Leary ever take a drop of 
liquor ? A. No child belonging to me has ever touched liquor. 

Q. He was a devoted churchman? A, Absolutely. 



392 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. And he married at what age, Mr. O'Leary? About the 
age of 28? A. Somewhere along there. 

Q. And he has several children ? A. He has four children. 

Q. And you have observed him as a family man? A. Yes. 

Q. Virtuous? A. Yes. 

Q. Devoted to his family ? A. Yes. 

Q. Mr. O'Leary, I will ask you to state whether or not your 
son worked diligently in his profession and from the proceeds 
bought him a home up at Jumel Terrace? A. He did. 

Q. Do you know why he bought the home on that site ? It 
is a historical site, is it not ? A. It was a good, a healthy and 
a historical location. 

Q. Did you ever know whether or not he bought it in that 
particular locality overlooking this river because Washing- 
ton's Headquarters were just across the street? A. Well, I 
knew the headquarters were across the street, but of course 
I did not know the incentive. I know he talked about it and 
liked it, and bought it. 

Q. Where are Jerry's wife and children now? I do not 
mean at the moment. Where are they living now? A. They 
are living with me. 

Q. Why ? A. Because they had to get rid of their home. 

Q. He has lost his home, Mr. O'Leary? A. Yes. 

Q. Home broken up? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And one of his children is with one relative and another 
with another? A. Yes. 

Q. And the balance of the family are living with you? A. 
That is right. 

Q. In a small flat in the City of New York. Was this home 
he lived in a large private house, Mr. O'Leary? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you know how much he paid for it? A. Between 
$13,000 and $15,000; I do not know just the figure. I know 
he laid out considerable money. 

Q. Do you know whether it was free and clear or mortgaged 
and he bought it himself and paid for it? A. Oh, yes. 



Defendant's Father a Witness 393 

Q. And was living there in peace, contentment and happi- 
ness? A. Yes. 

By Mr. Jeremiah A. O'Leary : Q. Pop, when was it that I 
sold my home — that is, when the home was sold? A. A few 
months ago, Jerry, 

Q. How many months ago was it? A. I should say about 
five months. 

Q. That was when my wife went down to live with you ? A. 
Yes. 

Q. Was the home that I had a large, spacious home ? A. It 
was. 

Q. Was it well furnished? A. Yes. 

Q. And the place you live in now, is that an apartment 
in a corner apartment house? A. It is an apartment. 

Q. How many rooms? A. Seven rooms. 

Q. And did my wife go down there with the four children 
after the home was sold? A. Yes. 

Q. It was kind of crowded there, wasn't it? A. A little bit. 

Q. And two of the children had to be sent out to other 
olaces ? A. Once in a while. 

Q. Aren't they out now ? A. They are out, yes. 

Q. All the time I was in the Tombs? A. Yes. 

Q. While all these relatives were in France, their cousin 
was in the Tombs. Is that right. Pop? A. Yes. 

Q. We always had strong convictions on the English ques- 
tion? A. Always. Had reason for it. 

Q. It was never any crime when grandpa was telling these 
stories, to talk about it, was it? A. Oh, no. 

Q. Did you ever know of an Irish-American before in the 
history of this country having been prosecuted by the United 
States Government because he hated England, Pop? A. I 
never heard of a case like this before. 

Q. Do you know Pop, that James W. Osborne, Jr., the 
prosecuting attorney in this case, that his father fought against 
the Union that your three brothers tried to save? Do you 
know that, pop? 



394 My Political Trial and Experiences 

The Court: That is an improper question, absolutely im- 
proper. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary : I know it is improper, but it is the 
truth. 

The Court: Don't continue this kind of an examination. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary: It is the truth, and men with red 
blood in their veins cannot look away from it. 

Mr. Felder: The witness is with you. 

Mr. Osborne: No questions. 

Mr. Felder: Come down, Mr, O'Leary. 



XIV 
SONS OF ERIN AND THE DRAFT. 

My next witness was Martin Conboy, Director of the Draft 
for New York City, who officially crushed the prosecution's 
suggestion that the Irish in New York conspired against the 
Draft. Mr. Conboy testified that the Irish alien had done his 
duty to the extent of 47 per cent., while the English alien had 
done only 32 per cent. The testimony was a revelation to 
the jury, but more than that, it was an established fact of great 
importance to the Irish in America. Mr. Conboy's testimony 
created a profound and favorable impression on all in the court- 
room, and was widely quoted in the press. I consider it as 
one of the most important attestations of the devotion of the 
Irish-American to the United States that has been made in 
recent American history. It can all be summed up in these 
words : The Irish in America claimed the fewest exemptions 
from military service of any other race, although they per- 
haps had the most claims to make if they desired to make them. 
On the contrary, men of English birth made the most claims 
to exemption. I consider it an extraordinary privilege to 
present these authentic facts through the medium of my per- 
secution. If this book performs no other service it justi- 
fies its existence by presenting and preserving for all time 
Mr. Conboy's examination as follows : 

By Mr. Felder: Q, Mr. Conboy, what official position did 
you hold after this country went to war against the German 
Empire ? A. For a period of time I was director of the Draft 
for New York City. 

Q. How long did you hold that position? A. From the 15th 
of January, 1918. 

Q. Up to and including what time ? A. I am still Director. 

Q. State to the jury, Mr. Conboy, in your own way, just 
what your duties were, your official duties. A. The office 

395 



396 My Political Trial and Experiences 

of New York City representative of Selective Service Head- 
quarters, known as the office of the Director of the Draft, has 
general supervision over the operations of the Draft in the 
City of New York. We have in this City 189 local boards; 
there are probably more here than there are in any state in 
the Union. The number of men, total classification lists of 
New York City after the September 12, 1918 registration was 
completed, was 1,483,000, and I suppose it is known to every- 
body that it is very variegated from the standpoint of racial 
groups and population. Generally speaking, the office was one 
of general supervision of the operations of the Draft within the 
entire city. 

Q. You were the official head of the operation of the Draft 
law for the entire city of New York? A. Yes. 

Q. Are you of Irish extraction ; A. Yes, sir ; on both sides. 

Q. I will ask you to state to the jury whether or not in the 
performance of your official duties you had occasion to classify 
the citizens of other countries living in America — I mean the 
citizens of Irish birth, the citizens of Ireland who lived here 
and came within the draft age, the French, Italians and various 
others? A. All persons who were within the United States 
and were not actually in the military or naval service of the 
United States on each registration day coming within the limits 
fixed by the particular law or proclamation determining who 
should register or required to register, whether they were 
American citizens or citizens of any other country. 

Q. Mr. Conboy, I will ask you this general question: Whether 
or not in the discharge of your duties you discovered during 
this period of time any disposition upon the Irish of the City 
of New York to obstruct the draft or to refuse military service 
or to create the slightest insub ordination f A. There was no 
evidence of any such thing. 

Q. I will ask you to state to this jury, Mr. Conboy, if you 
have the statistics of the various aliens to whom you referred, 
among what class of aliens did the largest per cent, in your 
classifications go in Qass 1 ? A. Well, all that we have in that 
respect is what is contained in the last report of the Provost- 



Sons of Erin and the Draft 397 

Marshal General showing the results of classifications through- 
out the entire United States. 

Q. Have you that record with you? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Well, take the United States then, from that report. 
A. The percentage of Irish in Class 1, that is, in the class that 
was immediately available for m^ilitary service, Irish aliens — 

Q. That is what I mean. A. Is the greatest of all national- 
ities or racial groups; the percentage of Irish in the deferred 
classiftcations, that is in Classes outside of Class 1, is the least 
of all races. 

Q. The least of all races. Can you tell the jury about what 
per cent of the Irish aliens subject to military duty in this coun- 
try, according to that report, was placed in Class 1 ? A. / 
think it is 45 per cent. 

Q. What per cent of English aliens were placed in Class 1 ? 
A. 32.27. 

Q. The Irish were 45 and the English were 32 and what? 
A. .27. 

Q. Have you the Italian? A. Yes; the Italians were 41.57. 

Q. Now, take up the other belligerents if you have them. 
A. The percentages of co-belligerents, according to this report, 
are as fdllows: Belgium, 35.75j; Chinese, 14.78; French, 
31.79; Canadian, 35.69; English, 32.27; Irish, 45.4; New 
Zealand, 43.50; Scotland, 35.64; Wales, 36.59; other British, 
32.24; Greece, 24.87; Italian, 41.57; Japanese, 6.74 — it is in- 
correctly set forth as 67.41, but there were 14,582 Japanese 
and 983 were in Class 1 — Portugal, 13.29; Armenia, 25.50; 
Russia, 24.22; Servia, 34.30; United States Indians, non-citi- 
zens, 29.73. The total percentage of all aliens in Class 1 was 
24.33, and co-belligerents 30.35. Then, of course, there were the 
neutrals: Central and South America, 21.79; Denmark, 38.70; 
Mexico, 13.25; Netherlands, 25.85; Norway, 34.81; Spain, 
17.25; Sweden, 32.24; Switzerland, 25.42; all others, 29.61. 

Q. Those statistics deal with the aliens. Have you any list 
of the various nationalities who were citizens of the United 
States, or could that be classified? A. No; there is no such 
tabulation been prepared, so far as I know. 



398 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. In a general way, do you know whether or not as many 
of the Irish race in this country volunteered for duty over- 
seas as any other nationality? A. It would be entirely an as- 
sumption on my part; I should be very much surprised if they 
had not. 

Q. Except as you might have seen it rejected in some of 
the newspapers, I will ask you to state to this jury whether 
or not you have ever heard, during the performance of your 
duties in the City of New York, of any Irish conspiracy or 
any attempt to obstruct the draft or to produce insubordination 
or to resist the draft or anything else that would show a lack 
of patriotic feeling and loyalty to this country? A. No, sir. 

Q. Have you ever known of any movement, public or private, 
on the part of the Irish-Americans or the Irish aliens in this 
country to produce any insubordination or any mutiny or any 
disloyalty to this country or to the flag of this country? A. 
No, sir. 



XV 

IRISH SOLDIERS SPURN BRITISH UNIFORMS. 

Captain Cavanagh, of the Sixty-Ninth Regiment, who had 
been wounded in France, a young man who had been sent back 
to attend the War College, being the youngest officer upon 
whom this great distinction had been conferred, swore that 
the Sixty-Ninth Regiment officers and men were my friends 
and spoke highly of me as a man and as a patriot, and particu- 
larly of my work in the Sixty-Ninth Regiment. He made it 
very clear that the members of the Regiment had no love for 
England, and that they did not approve of the persecution to 
which I had been subjected. He related an incident which the 
newspapers had never printed, and which was new to those 
in the courtroom. He told how the men in the Sixty-Ninth 
had mutinied because they had been asked to wear British 
uniforms. They had run short of supplies, British uniforms 
were handed out, and they absolutely refused to put them on. 
No urging or threats could move them. Accordingly, the 
uniforms were sent back, altered and made American, where- 
upon the men agreed to wear them. Captain Cavanagh's tes- 
timony produced a strong and visible effect on the jury, and 
he made a striking figure indeed as he sat upright in the witness 
chair, every inch the soldier and gentleman, answering all 
questions quietly and to the point. I take pride and pleasure 
in quoting it: 

By Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary: 

Q. Where do you live. Captain? A. At 51 Hamilton Place. 

Q. In this city? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You were born in this country ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Where? A. Holyoke, Mass. 

Q. Were you during the late war a member and officer of 
the 69th Regiment ? A. I was. 

Q. And did you go with the regiment to France? A. I did. 

399 



400 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. What was your rank when you returned from France, 
Captain? A. First Lieutenant. 

Q. What was your rank after that time? A. Captain. 

Q. Are you now in or out of the service? A. I am out of 
the service. 

Q. When were you discharged? A. The 27th or 28th of 
December. 

Q. 1918? A. 1918. 

Q. What is your occupation in civil life? A. Lawyer. 

Q. Before you joined the 69th Regiment, what regiment 
did you belong to ? A. The Seventh New York. 

Q. When did you join the Seventh Regiment? A. About 
eight years ago; I am not certain of the date. 

Q. That would be about 1911? A. It was 1910 or 1911. 

Q. I suppose you joined it as a private? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And when did you go from the Seventh Regiment to 
the 69th? A. In April, 1917. 

Q. That was just about at the outbreak of the war? A. Yes, 
sir; within a few weeks before the outbreak of the war. 

Q. Where did you make the transfer? Did you make it 
at Camp Mills or where ? A. At New York City ; it was before 
the regiment went to Camp Mills. 

Q. At that time where was the 69th Regiment located ? A. 
The regiment had just been demobilized after service on the 
border, and were located in the armory on Lexington Avenue. 

Q. Did you go to the border with the Seventh Regiment? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How much service did you see down there? A. I went 
down the middle of June, and came back the first of December. 

Q. Were you a friend of Lieutenant Whalen, my wife's 
brother, who died at the Mexican border with the 69th Regi- 
ment ? A. Yes, sir ; we were intimate friends. 

Q. He was also an officer of the 69th Regiment, was he not ? 
A. Yes, sir ; not in my time ; he was in the Seventh during my 
time. 

Q. But he transferred from the Seventh to the 69th Regi- 



Irish Soldiers Spurn British Unifomis 401 

ment and became a commissioned officer and went with the 
69th Regiment to the Mexican border where he died of menin- 
gitis? A. Where he died, yes, sir. 

Q. When did the 69th go to France? A. It left in two 
sections; the first section left the latter part of October; that 
was one battalion. 

The Court: 1917? 

The Witness : In 1917, yes, sir ; and the second section, con- 
sisting of two battalions, of which I was a part, left on Octo- 
ber 30 ; we embarked at that time but did not sail for a day or 
two afterwards. 

Q. What company were you attached to at that time? A. 
At that time I was acting assistant regimental adjutant. 

Q. Who was the regimental adjutant? A. Captain Doyle, 
now Major Doyle. 

Q. The adjutant is not what they call a line officer, is he? 
A. The adjutant is a staff officer. 

Q. Did you later become attached or connected with line 
work? A. After our arrival in France, at my request. 

Q. What company, Captain? A. First with Company I, 
afterwards Company M, and afterwards Company E. 

Q. Did you see service there ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. In the trenches ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. For how long? A. From February until the end of 
May. 

Q. 1918? A. 1918. 

Q. At what places? A. Near Luneville and afterwards 
near Baccarat. 

Q. Only in those two vicinities ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Were you under fire at both places? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You were not with the regiment when they crossed the 
Ourcq River? A. No, sir; I had been ordered home prior to 
that time as an instructor. 

Q. State whether or not you were in command of any com- 
pany while you were in the trenches under fire, Captain? A. 



402 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Yes, sir ; I was in command of Company I, and later of Com- 
pany E. 

Q. Were you personally acquainted with and associated with 
men in the regiment who were my former associates? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. Will you tell the jury who those men were? A. Well, 
Major Moynihan, now Lieutenant Colonel Moynihan, Major 
Stacom and Major Kelly, who was then Captain Kelly. 

Q. He has received the Distinguished Service Cross? A. 
Since I left France; I saw the notice. Captain Archer. 

Q. He was "Ji"^"^i^" Archer, the 100 yard Metropolitan 
champion. Did you know Lieutenant Dick Allen? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. Lieutenant Coleman Burns ? Yes, sir. 

Q. Captain Hurley? A. Yes. 

Q. Major James McKenna? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. He was killed at the Ourcq River ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Now, Captain, have you discussed with those men, have 
you talked to those men about me? A. I have often heard 
your name mentioned by those men. 

Q. Are you acquainted. Captain, with my reputation among 
the officers of the regiment? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. As to truth and veracity and as to service performed? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What is it? A. Excellent. 

Q. Now, Captain, is there any feeling in the 69th Regiment 
that you found or observed there in regard to the freedom 
of Ireland? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What is that? A. Among the men there is a very pro- 
nounced antipathy toward England. 

Q. And was there any incident that occurred there while 
you were in charge of your company and while you were 
with the regiment that emphasized that? A. There was one 
incident that at the time amused me, and that emphasized it 
upon my mind very strongly. During the winter the service 
of supplies on the other side had not been built up as well as 
it was afterwards. We had a long hike through the snow that 



Irish Soldiers Spurn British Uniforms 403 

lasted six days. During that time our supplies had difficulty 
in keeping up with us ; the mules had difficulty in getting the 
supplies through the snow ; and at the time of our arrival at the 
new divisional area we were very short of supplies, short of 
shoes and uniforms. Pending the arrival or the building up 
of the system of supply to this new area, which was a con- 
siderable distance, about one hundred kilometers, somewhat 
over fifty miles, from where we had been, a ntmiber of British 
uniforms were borrowed from one of their base depots in the 
vicinity. I remember this evening I came in there from drill 
with the company, had some work in the orderly room, and we 
had a supply station down the street in this little town, and 
there were a number of the men arguing and making consider- 
able noise in front of the supply station. I came out and asked 
the supply sergeant, "what is the matter?" and he said, "the 
men won't take these uniforms." It rather amused me. There 
was not a man there in this crowd of members of the regi- 
ment who was willing to put on these British uniforms, which 
were just furnished temporarily. As it turned out, we after- 
wards sent them back to our regimental supply officer to pro- 
vide them with the buttons of American uniforms. And I 
put one on, the other officers put them on, and the men then 
put them on afterwards. 

Q. Now, Captain, did that feeling of antipathy to England 
as you have described in any way, so far as you observed it, 
influence the fighting of the men or the fighting qualities of the 
men or the morale of the men in the regiment? A. Not a bit. 

Q. Usually men with strong convictions make good fighters, 
don't they, Captain ? A. Well, I would think they would have 
to have strong convictions, yes, sir. 

Q. As officers, did you ever have any trouble with these men 
keeping them tuider control because of their feeling in regard 
to England while in Europe ? x\. No ; the discipline of the men 
was surprisingly good from the time we reached France. 

Q. You did not interfere with any discussion of the Irish 
question? A. I was not interested in it. 



404 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. Did you give the men perfect liberty to discuss those 
questions? A. They talked about what they liked. 

Q. If you had interfered with them then you might have 
discouraged them ? A. There was no reason for it. 

By Mr. Arthur O'Leary: Q. You were ordered back from 
France, were you not? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And you were ordered on duty as an instructor at Fort 
Sill? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Is that the School of Arms? A. The Infantry School 
of Arms. 

Q. And you served there as an instructor for a time? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. You were then ordered to Washington? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Weren't your services requested in Washington by a 
member of the General Staff? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And what service were you ordered to perform at Wash- 
ington? A. Well, that would be rather difficult to say, just 
what the service was. 

Q. In what division ? A. I was with the War Plans Division 
of the General Staff. 

Q. They also call it the Army War College? A. Well, that 
was merely the location. 

Q. You were the lowest rank man in that service ? A. There 
may have been one or two more captains on duty at various 
times, but I was practically the only captain on duty there. 

Q. The general type of men in the War Plans Division 
were men that were of the rank of Colonel and such as that? 
A. The majority of the officers on duty at the War College 
at that time were Colonels or Lieutenant Colonels; most of 
them were ranking officers of the Army. 

Q. Now, Captain, I think you have stated that your occu- 
pation is that of a lawyer ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And as a lawyer, have you had business relations with 
the defendant O'Leary? A. In the past I have, yes, sir. 

Q. For about how many years? A. I have known Mr. 
O'Leary for about nine years. 



Irish Soldiers Spurn British Uniforms 405 

Q. He has had business with the company with which you 
are associated, has he not? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You have been and I believe are counsel for the Hart- 
ford Insurance Company? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Are you acquainted, or are you familiar with the repu- 
tation of the defendant Jeremiah O'Leary among lawyers and 
among people of that class with whom he had dealt? A. I 
think I am. 

Q. Are you acquainted and familiar with his reputation 
among people of that character for truth and veracity? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. What is that reputation and character? A. That is ex- 
cellent. 

Q. Is the 69th New York, or rather the 165th United States 
which is also the 69th New York, now in France? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. And these associates and intimates of the defendant 
Jeremiah O'Leary whom you have mentioned as among the of- 
ficers of the 69th, are now in France? A. The majority of 
them are, yes, sir. 

Next came Rev. John H. Dooley, rector of Corpus Christi 
Church and Catholic Chaplain of Columbia University, always 
a staunch and devoted American of American birth. Father 
Dooley stated that he belonged to the American Truth Society 
and was interested in its work. He denied with emphasis the 
existence of a conspiracy among the Irish to obstruct the Draft, 
called such a charge "ridiculously false" and told in rebuttal 
of what his parish had done for the war. He also narrated 
the organization and activities of the John P. Holland Branch 
of the Friends of Irish Freedom, which was recruited in his 
parish and holds its meetings in his parish hall. He vouched 
strongly for the patriotism and character of the defendant, 
and swore that while he read every issue of "Bull," he never 
saw anything in it calculated to create disloyalty, mutiny or 
insubordination in the Army or Navy. Father Dooley is a 
man of strong personality and made an exceptionally effective 
witness in my behalf. 



406 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Rev. P. J. O'Donnell, the popular Assistant rector at St. 
Francis de Sales Church, next took the stand and furnished 
a direct contradiction to Arthur Lyons' statements that I had 
raved and sworn in his presence in front of his Church, the 
night before I went West. He described me as a clean-spoken 
man, who never used profanity. He vouched strongly for 
my patriotism and character, and also ridiculed the idea of 
any conspiracy among the Irish to defeat the Draft. 

Warden Hanley of the Tombs and Inspector Faurot, one of 
the most famous detectives and criminologists in the country, 
attacked the methods of identification employed by the Govern- 
ment in both my case and that of Willard J. Robinson. They 
each swore that the proper and the only safe and fair way to 
identify a prisoner was to compel the identifier to select the 
prisoner from a line of men, and that such was the best ap- 
proved method, and was in use everywhere. Both declared 
that an identification where the prisoner was alone was bad. 
I refer to Inspector Faurot's testimony because he is one of 
the most famous police experts in the United States. 

A striking and malign coincidence occurred while Inspector 
Faurot was on the stand. The prosecution brought a woman 
into court, and I observed Dr. Bischofif pointing out Robinson, 
who was temporarily in the courtroom, calling her attention 
to him. I protested vigorously against such unfair methods 
and demanded the Court's protection for Robinson. Mr. Os- 
borne was plainly angered at Dr. Bischoff's sinister action but 
said nothing in reply to my protest. The woman was hurried 
out of the courtroom while the jury looked on with astonish- 
ment. 

Thomas McCoy corroborated Stephen W. Johnson's testi- 
mony in regard to Victorica's visit to Thirty-seventh Street 
and Broadway. He was not cross-examined, to the surprise of 
every one, and left the stand smiling. John R. Jones, a lawyer, 
who had been associated with me in my practice. Miss Bleecker, 
a stenographer, and Louis Goldman, a law clerk, former em- 
ployees, all testified to the raid on my office, in which my books 



Irish Soldiers Spurn British Uniforms 407 

and papers were illegally seized and taken away by Dr. Bis- 
choff of the American Protective League, and Agent Kemp of 
the Department of Justice. They told how Kemp was in my 
office every day for two weeks, ransacking and examining 
every paper and document, and how they did not dare to inter- 
fere. It appeared that Mr. Jones was threatened with an indict- 
ment, by means of a written presentment made to District 
Attorney Barnes — a most extraordinary proceeding, since 
Grand Juries by law make their presentments to the Court. 
The abuse of the Grand Jury process by a public prosecutor 
was sufficiently startling in its irregularity to shock the jury. 
Other witnesses called were P. J. Conway, President of the 
Irish-American Athletic Club and Judge James A. Delahanty, 
both of whom attested my good character. 



XVI 
SENSATIONS IN COURT. 

Major Michael F. O'Rourke, a veteran of the Spanish-Amer- 
ican War, then took the stand. As a Trustee of the American 
Truth Society and member of the National Executive Commit- 
tee of the Friends of Irish Freedom, he made an excellent and 
impressive witness. By calling a successful business man, he 
related in a very quiet and impressive manner facts of prime 
importance which ridiculed the government's contention that 
the Irish were opposed to the Draft and countenanced a plan 
to resist it. He gave the history of the Truth Society and cor- 
roborated other witnesses on the main points of the defense. 
As a witness he made an excellent impression. 

Then Dr. Gertrude E. Kelly, one of the most active women 
workers for the Irish Cause in New York, took the stand. She 
sprung a complete surprise on the prosecution when she swore 
she was present in Court when Mme. Victorica took the stand 
and observed her and that she acted the part of a drug addict or 
"dope fiend" as they are popularly called. Dr. Kelly, a woman 
of high medical standing, described in detail Victorica's ac- 
tions upon which she based her professional conclusions. 
Much to my surprise she was not cross-examined by the gov- 
ernment, although her testimony was one of the strong cards 
of the defense. Dr. Kelly was well able to testify on other 
matters but I did not desire to submerge what I felt was very 
important medical evidence which completely discredited the 
alleged "German spy," with other matters copiously attended 
to by scores of other witnesses of the standing and cleverness 
of women like Mrs. Gertrude Corliss and Mary Brennan. 

A sensation awaited the court and all present when Willard 
J. Robinson mounted the witness stand. He was represented 
by William Travers Jerome and Judge John T. Martin. Mr. 
Jerome stated that he would permit his client to answer only 

408 



Sensations in Court 409 

five questions. These he had written on a sheet of paper and 
given to Mr. Felder. Robinson swore that he had never met 
Victorica, He declared that he had never worn a moustache, 
thus contradicting Chief of Police Pettit, of Long Beach. 
He also denied that he had met John J. O'Leary or Arthur 
Lyons at Newburgh. He then refused to answer any more 
questions, though strongly importuned to do so by the defense. 
Robinson was cool and collected on the stand, and replied 
in a manner to convince all that he was telling the exact truth. 
In refusing to answer all questions freely he said, "I have no 
faith in the integrity of the prosecution. I refuse to answer." 
Following Robinson on the stand came Bird T. Wise, who 
identified the Wise letter, the communication in which Henry 
A. Wise, former District Attorney for the Southern District 
of New York, declared that he had to retire from his connec- 
tion with the O'Leary defense, because of fear of persecution 
in Washington, "such as that to which General Wood was sub- 
jected." 

My brother, Arthur T. O'Leary, next took the stand, and 
related in great detail his work during the war. He had charge 
of the shipment of all airplanes and aircraft supplies from 
New York, had the custody of important military and air- 
craft secrets; had charge of the piers and of their protection 
from destruction. He knew the time of sailing of all ships 
and received constantly reports of all ship movements. He 
was in continual communication with Washington, knew the 
military codes, and was informed of the movements of troops. 
His testimony showed how absurd was the contention of the 
Government that I had conspired to blow up ships, since the 
Government placed a brother of mine in charge of shipping at 
New York. Mrs. Mary Schulte and Miss Catherine Brady 
testified that on several occasions they had reported to me sus- 
picious activities of Japanese and Germans, the former around 
the new fort at Rockaway, and the latter in an apartment house ; 
and that in both instances I had advised them to inform the De- 
partment of Justice, and that in both cases the Department of 



410 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Justice or the Bureau of Naval Intelligence had investigated, 
in the former instance very carefully. 

On Monday morning, March 10, Mrs. Eleanor Johnston 
Kelly, wife of Major Michael A. Kelly, of the Sixty-Ninth 
Regiment, then in France, was called to attest my character 
and the warm friendship between her husband and myself. 
Mrs. Kelly quietly and with reserve made an excellent impres- 
sion on the jury. She was not cross-examined. Mrs. Kelly 
was followed by Sergeant O'Brien of the Sixty-Ninth Regi- 
ment, who took part in every battle in France in which the 
"Fighting Sixty-Ninth" was engaged, and was himself 
wounded twice. O'Brien made a very strong witness for the 
defense. He was a fine, stalwart type of the Irish race, and 
every inch a fighter. He wore his uniform and showed his 
scars to the jury. He related how the Sixty-Ninth hated the 
British and told how Captain McKenna — later Major McKenna 
— who was killed while leading his men across the Ourcq 
River, told the boys not to put the British imiforms on, "to 
wear their rags first." He also said that the men of the Sixty- 
Ninth said that "O'Leary's arrest was an outrage," and that 
every man of the Regiment hoped that I would get out of it. 
Sergeant O'Brien's testimony made a powerful impression on 
the jury. I am proud to quote it as convincing evidence that 
instinctive, just hatred of England by an American of Irish 
birth, because of England's treatment of Ireland, in no way 
derogates from an Irishman's devotion to our common coimtry. 

By Mr. Felder — Q. Sergeant O'Brien, where were you born ? 
A. Ireland, sir. County Cork. 

Q. At what age did you come to America? A. At the age 
of 25. 

Q. Have you seen any military service? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. State to the jury when you first enlisted to do military 
service? A. The 29th of August, 1915. 

Q. What regiment did you join? A. The 69th, now the 
165th. 

Q. What military duties, if any, did you perform after you 



Sensations in Court 411 

joined the 69th in 1915? A. We were drilled one night a 
week in the armory, at that time. 

Q. After that did you go with the regiment to Mexico? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. You did duty along the boundary line? A. Along the 
border. 

Q. Then, when you came back, when did you return to 
New York with the 69th from the Mexican border? A, The 
6th of March, 1917. 

Q. That was the National Guard then, wasn't it? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. Did you remain a member of the 69th after that ? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q.When war was declared against the Imperial German Em- 
pire, I will ask you to state whether you volunteered for ser- 
vice? A. I volunteered, sir. 

Q. With the 69th? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Where did you go after you volunteered ? A. To France. 

Q. But before you went to France? A. Camp Mills. 

Q. And then you went to France when the 69th was amal- 
gamated or rather was changed to the 165th? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. That is part of the Rainbow Division? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. That was the first to go over to France, wasn't it? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. When did you arrive in France? A. About the 12th of 
November. 

Q. How old are you Sergeant? A. 31. 

Q. Who commanded your regiment in France ? A. We had 
several commanders; Colonel Hines took us over, and he was 
promoted ; then we got Colonel Parker, and he got promotion ; 
then we got Colonel McCoy, and he got promoted, 

Q. What battles did you fight in? A. Every battle the 
American soldiers fought in ; I was in every one. 

Q. What is that? A. I was in every battle that was fought 
in France. 



412 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. That is, that was fought 'by your regiment in France. 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Can you name some of them? A. I was at the Cham- 
pagne front, the battle of the Ourcq, Chateau-Thierry, the 
battle of Belleau Wood, the St. Mihiel saHent, and the Argonne 
Forest. 

Q. Were you wounded in any of those battles? A. I was 
wounded in the last battle in the Argonne Forest. 

Q. Where were you wounded? A. I was wounded in the 
hand. 

Q. Just hold up your hand and show it to the jury. Where 
did the bullet go in? A. The back of my hand and came out 
there, (indicating) a compound fracture. 

Q. Wounded anywhere else? A. In the chest, a machine 

gun bullet; it went in here and glanced out here (indicating). 

Q. When did you come back to America? A. On the 20th 

day of January, and got discharged the first day of March. 

Q. Where were you when the armistice was declared? A. 

I was in the hospital in Vichy. 

Q. Was James A. McKenna your captain? A. He was my 
captain on the border and my captain in France in "D" Com- 
pany. 

O. Do you know whether he was an Irishman, of Irish 
extraction? A. He was Irish- American. 

Q. Now, Sergeant, from time to time were you ordered 
to wear English uniforms? A, Yes, sir. 

Q. With the balance of your regiment? A. Well, some 
of them, sir. 

Q. Wa^ it because your uniforms were worn out? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. What position did your regiment take in regard to 
wearing the English uniform? A. We refused tO' wear them. 
Q. Where and when was that ? A. That was probably about 
March or April. 

Q. What year? A. 1918. 

Q. When you refused to wear the uniforms, they permitted 
you to replace the old tattered, worn QVX uniform with the 



Sensations in Court 413 

English uniform, it was at the option of the soldier whether 
he accepted it or not? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What per cent of the regiment decHned? A. Some of 
the men in the regiment said they would rather wear the rags 
they had on than to put on the English uniform. 

Q. In the trenches the soldiers can wear anything they 
want to wear, can't they? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Any kind of uniform that will make them warm and 
comfortable without regard to where they were manufactured ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did that interfere with the morale of the regiment at 
all, or their fighting qualities? A. No, sir. 

Q. I want you to tell the jury whether or not you have 
ever read before you went with the Expeditionary Forces to 
France, any of the reported speeches or excerpts from speeches 
of the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, published from time 
to time in the "Gaelic American"? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you read them and consider them carefully? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. I will ask you to state to the jury whether or not any- 
thing you ever read as coming from him produced with you any 
insubordination or mutinous spirit? A. No, sir. I heard sev- 
eral tim^es in France men and officers of the regiment speak of 
O'Leary and the good work he done as a member of the 69th 
Regiment, and sadd it was an outrage he should be arrested 
and hoped he would get out. 

Q. Did you hear the boys in the trenches discuss his arrestf 
A. Yes. 

Q. What did they say about it? A. They hoped he would 
get out of it; it was an outrage to arrest him. 

Q. Did Major McKenna say anything to you or to the other 
soldiers as to whether or not they could wear the English 
uniforms or go in rags? A. He said when the English uni- 
forms were issued to his company, "Close up the boxes and 
do with what we have." 



414 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Q. What became of Major McKenna? A. He was killed 
crossing the Ourcq. 

Q. Killed leading the 69th or 165th across the Ourcq? A. 
Yes. 

Q. He was going forward and not backward ? A. Yes, sir ; 
leading his men. 

Q. Sergeant, do you love England f A. No, sir. 

Q. Do you hate England f A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did that interfere in any way with your fighting for your 
country f A. No, sir. 

Q. Are you in favor of Irish freedom? A. Yes-, sir. 

Q. Have your views on that question changed by the car- 
nage you saw in France? A. I beg your pardon, sir? 

Q. Are you just as much in favor of Irish freedom today 
as when^ou were following Major McKenna across the Ourcq? 
A. More in favor of it, sir. 

Q. Sergeant, when you joined the 69th Regiment, were you 
a citizen of the United States? A. No, sir. 

Q. You had not been naturalised. Are you a citizen now? 
A. Well, we were made citizens in France, sir, but at the present 
time I have no papers to show for it. 

Mr. Felder — You may take the witness. 

Mr. Osborne — No questions.* 



*Note how the Government refused to cross-examine. This testimony 
completely shattered the Government's contention that hatred of England 
was disloyalty to the United States, or, that it could create mutiny. 



XVII 

BAZAAR WORKERS CONTRADICT GONZALES. 

The testimony of the Irish Bazaar workers in contradiction 
of the Gonzales woman was overwhelming. The perjury com- 
mitted by this Government witness was amply refuted by Mrs. 
Brannigan, whose eldest son had been killed in France ; Private 
W. J. B. McLoughlin, Mr. Thomas Lennon, Mrs. D. D, Mc- 
Carthy, Mrs. McGowan,* Miss McVeigh, Mr. Walsh, Miss 
Helen Kelly, and Kathleen Kemmey, all of whom heard my 
speech at 715 Lexington Avenue on the night of July 15, 1917. 
Prosecutor Osborne strenuously tried to shake the testimony of 
each witness on cross-examination. His efforts, however, 
were fruitless because unlike the Government's pet witnesses 
they had told the truth. Each swore that I had never mentioned 
conscription in my speech; that I had not said, "We must 
resist the Draft until death," and that the object of the meet- 
ing was not, as Mrs. Gonzales falsely swore, to resist Conscrip- 
tion, but to classify the names of the Irish Relief Bazaar donors, 
so as to have a permanent record of proven friends of the 
Irish cause. When Miss Kemmey was on the stand, Mr. Mar- 
shall arose evidently angry and desperate, because Gonzales 
had been so completely discredited and asked Miss Kemmey, 
"Don't you know that there is a tradition amongst the Irish 
that no person of Irish blood turns informer?" insinuating 
that Miss Kemmey was committing perjury. Miss Kemmey 
sprang to her feet, her face flushed with indignation, and con- 
fronting Marshall, rephed: "How dare you say such a thing? 
You are the perjurers and you are no gentleman to say such 
a thing. You are a Southern bigot." The courtroom was im- 
mediately the scene of great excitement. Arthur O'Leary 
quickly arose, denounced Marshall, and characterized the ques- 
tion as outrageous and as another villainous and bigoted attack 



• A daughter of the late O'Donovan Kossa. 

415 



416 My Political Trial and Experiences 

on the entire Irish race. Marshall was plainly ashamed of him- 
self and dropped into his chair, while Miss Kemmey continued 
to direct scornful glances at the volunteer prosecutor. Miss 
Kemmey was a very refined young woman, a teacher in the 
public schools, and a member of an excellent family. She was 
very demure and youthful in appearance, but a valiant woman 
in fact when unjustly assailed. 

Following Miss Kemmey on the stand came Mr. P. J. Gay- 
nor, long prominent in Irish affairs and one of the most active 
workers at the Bazaar. He ridiculed the Gonzales woman's false 
testimony. Just before he left the stand I asked him, "Do you 
know all these young women who have testified about that 
meeting on Lexington Avenue?" "Yes," he replied. "What 
is their reputation for truth and veracity?" Marshall objected, 
but I replied, "You attacked them. You said they were per- 
jurers. We now want to show who the perjurers are." Judge 
Hand overruled Marshall and Mr. Gaynor replied, "Excellent, 
These women are above reproach." Miss Mary Brennan and 
Mrs. Gertrude Corliss contradicted the reporters about what 
happened at the Friends of Irish Freedom meeting at Sulzer's 
Harlem River Casino in August, 1917. Both Marshall and 
Mr. Osborne cross-examined them without any result, save to 
strengthen their testimony. The cross-examination was severe 
and of great length, but they came through it strengthened and 
confirmed. They related an incident at the Public Forum in 
Brooklyn, where I was scheduled to debate with Cleveland 
H. Moffett on "Free Speech During War." Moffett failed to 
appear and the Forum authorities introduced a Hoover food 
speaker in his stead. This man spent some time praising Mr. 
Hoover, when a member of the audience interrupted, saying, 
"Cut out boosting Hoover for President, and talk about food," 
while the audience cheered. The speaker then said, "We must 
conserve our foodstuffs, our bread, our wheat, our sugar and 
meats for — " "America first," shouted a wag, and again the audi- 
ence cheered. The speaker growing angry, remarked, "You are 
a disloyal audience." "You lie!" Take that back," "You're an 
Englishman," roared members of the audience in turn. The 



Bazaar Workers Contradict Gonzales 417 

witnesses related how I rose from my seat on the platform 
and addressing the audience, said: "Ladies and Gentlemen: 
You came here tonight to protest against any interference 
with free speech. You and the Irish cause have suffered, 
because Mayor Mitchel has interfered with free speech. Now, 
you yourselves have shown the same intolerance you charge 
against others. If you believe in free speech you must give this 
man a hearing, even though he disagrees with you, even though 
he has insulted you." This was a telling point with the jury. 

John P. Cohalan, Surrogate of New York County, and 
brother of Daniel F. Cohalan, who was insulted by the Presi- 
dent, appeared as a witness for me. He swore that in 1917 I 
had told him that I was glad my brother, Arthur, had enlisted 
and that I would have done likewise, had not the condition of 
my health and family and other responsibilities intervened. He 
also testified that I was a good American, of splendid profes- 
sional standing, and that my character and reputation were ex- 
cellent. The Surrogate was followed by Judge Cornelius Col- 
lins, of the Court of Special Sessions, who had known me for 
fifteen years, and whose testimony was to the same effect as 
that of his brother jurist. Cross-examining Judge Collins, after 
his commendation of my character as "a citizen and as a man," 
Marshall asked, "Don't you know. Judge, that over one hun- 
dred and fifty jurors said they were so prejudiced against the 
defendant, O'Leary, that they could not even give him a fair 
trial ?" Arthur O'Leary jumped to his feet and exclaimed : 
"I object, your Honor, to that question. If Marshall will tell 
the jury how the jury panel was selected, and how so many 
members of the American Protective League were on the panel, 
I'll let Judge Collins answer." Judge Hand sustained my 
brother, and advised Judge Collins not to answer, holding 
the question an improper one. 

Soldier after soldier took the stand and swore they hated 
England and wanted Ireland to be free, but that their affec- 
tion for Ireland and their hatred of England made them love 
the United States all the more. Sergeant Duffy, a lad born in 
Tyrone, Ireland, and in full uniform, when asked by me, "Do 



418 My Political Trial and Experiences 

you love England?" answered, "Noi one loves England." 
Foreman Hunter gave Duffy a black look when this answer 
came. It is quite evident that Hunter loves England and 
dislikes any witness who does not. He seems to forget that 
this evidence should be impersonal with him. I am simply 
answering the government's contentions that hatred of England 
is a detriment to the American soldier — and I know of no 
more effective way than to prove it out of the mouths of men 
who hate England and yet have done their full duty to the 
United States. 

My wife was the next witness called. The prosecution ob- 
jected to her testifying and the objection was sustained. No 
wife can testify for her husband in a criminal case in the 
United States Court and vice versa, yet the Government could 
have waived objection. Its insistence upon a technicality was 
a decided act of weakness. 

Next Miss Anna Prendergast took the stand and testified 
about my accidental meeting with Victorica at the Hofbrau 
House. She stated it lasted only a few minutes and was open 
and accompanied by no secrecy. She was not cross-examined. 

My mother was the next witness, and in a quiet way related 
the effects of early incidents, and stories told by her father, 
an old Irish Nationalist, on my youthful life. While my mother 
was testifying, the foreman of the jury, Mr. Hunter, of the 
stock brokerage concern of Hunter & Childs, turned his back 
to her and his face away from her. This was observed by 
every one in the courtroom and was the subject of much com- 
ment. Hunter also turned his back on Sergeant O'Brien, who 
was wounded in battle, when he declared that he hated Eng- 
land. Ernest R. Hunter had said he could bury his prejudices, 
but in other instances just as in these they cropped out every 
time the defense scored heavily. His conduct shocked the 
spectators and in my opinion indicated what he would do. 

Then Judge Goif took the stand with testimony relating 
to my good character. The venerable jurist denied emphatic- 
ally that the Irish in America were disloyal to the United 
States. He declared that "the Irish immigrant is devoted to 




Mrs. Daniel O'Leary, Mother of Jeremiah A. O'Leary. 



Bazaar Workers Contradict Gonzales 419 

America before he ever puts foot on the ship which brings 
him to our shores." His testimony was pubHshed widely in 
the press. Miss Sullivan, floor clerk at the Waldorf-Astoria 
Hotel, recalled how an Agent of the Department of Justice 
came to her with my picture and tried to get her to say that she 
had seen me at the hotel, talking to Victorica.* 

Felix McCarron and James Martin, keepers from the Tombs, 
were called to attest that an Agent of the Department of Justice 
tried to point out Robinson and myself to a man brought there 
to identify us in a line-up held September 23, 1918 at the 
Tombs. The Judge ruled out this testimony against the 
strenuous objections of the defense. 



* An absolute falsehood. 



XVIII 

CARTOON AN AMUSING FIASCO. 

Sergeant Duffy was followed by another stalwart soldier 
in uniform, Robert Emmet Buckley, a cousin from Glens Falls, 
N. Y. The feature of his testimony was his characterization 
of a cartoon, "Humanity & Co.," upon which the government 
relied as one to create mutiny, as "a joke." Private Buckley's 
testimony is very interesting and can be appreciated better by 
reading it : 

By Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — Q. What is your full name? A. 
Robert Emmet Buckley. 

Q. You are named after Robert Emmet, the young Irishman 
who was executed by the British Government because he loved 
Ireland? A. Yes> sir. 

Q. And your parents named you Robert Emmet because they 
admired that man? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Were you born in this country? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Are you a cousin of mine, Mr. Buckley? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And have I spent a great many weeks at your home? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And have we spent together a great deal of time ? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. Were you quite familiar with my ideas about England? 
A. Yes, sir. 

Q. And were you also in sympathy with them? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Are you a drafted man or a volunteer? A. Drafted. 

Q. When were you drafted? A. April 4, 1918. 

Q. And after you were drafted, were you given military 
training? A. Four weeks on this side and then I went over. 

Q. Four weeks on this side only? A. Five weeks, 

Q. Had you ever had any military training before? A. No, 
sir. 

420 



Cartoon an Amusing Fiasco 421 

Q. So you were supposed to pick up the rudiments of mili- 
tary work in four or five weeks ? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What particular part of the service did you go into in 
France? A. Machine gun. 

Q. What do they call the machine gun section? A. "The 
Suicides." 

Q. In other words, the men themselves call their own sec- 
tion "the suicide section" ? A. Yes. 

Q. Why do they call it that? A. They think it is the most 
dangerous branch. 

Q. In other words, that is a branch where the men ex- 
pected to meet death? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You had to go out in advance and you had to smash 
and capture machine gun nests and positions of artillery of 
the enemy? A. We had to stay there — no retreat. 

Q. Were you under fire, Mr. Buckley? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. How many times? A. From September 13th to October 
15th. 

Q. That was when the fiercest fighting at the front went 
on, was it? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You have some stripes on your arm. What do they 
indicate? A. One is a service stripe, and the other a wound 
stripe. 

Q. Were you wounded? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Where were you wounded ? A. On the left shoulder, 

Q. While you were in France your dear father died? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you know anything about it until you got home? 
A. No, sir. 

Q. When you walked into the house you found he had 
been dead and buried f A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You were never able to learn about that when you were 
fighting? A. No, sir. 

Q. You were kept absolutely from communication with your 



422 My Political Trial and Experiences 

family, weren't you ? A. I never heard from them until I went 
to the hospital, and I did not hear after that. 

Q. After that you did not hear from them? A. No. 

Q. Now, Mr. Buckley, were you trained with the British 
soldiers before you were sent into the fighting? A. We were 
with them about six or seven weeks in northern France. 

Q. And were you under instructions by British officers? A. 
Yes, sir. 

Q. Before you went to France mith your company did you 
hate England t A. Yes, sir. 

Q. After your experiences with them, Mr. Buckley, how did 
you feel about themf A. Why, a little worse. 

Q. You hated them worse? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. What was the feeling, Mr. Buckley, of all the American 
soldiers you associated with about the British after your as- 
sociation with them for a couple of months? Did they love 
themf A. No, sir. 

Q. Now, despite the fact that you hated the British worse 
when you got over there, did that in any way interfere with 
your fighting, Mr. Buckley? A. No, sir. 

Q. Did you go in and give the best to your country? A. Yes, 
sir. 

Q. After you were taken to the hospital, what, if anything, 
did you do to get back to the front ? A. Well, that was not after 
I was wounded, because the armistice was signed before I got 
out of the hospital. 

Q. Before that time were you in a hospital? A. I was in 
a hospital in August. 

Q. What did you do to get to the front ? A. There were about 
six of us there ; our company had "scabbies" ; that comes from 
dirt on our clothes ; we were supposed to stay ten days to get 
cured, and we were there a week, and a fellow came in from 
our division and told us our division was going to the front; 
that was at St. Mihiel; so we were supposed to stay there 
two weeks, but we were practically well, there were only 
a few sores on us, and so we put talcum powder on them 
so that you could not notice them and the doctor let us out. 



Cartoon an Amusing Fiasco 423 

Q. In other words, you wanted to go sooner than stay there ? 
A, We did not want to he left behind. 

Q. Where did you fight? What parts of the front? A. 
The first was in St. Mihiel in September, and from there over 
to the Argonne. 

Q. And the Argonne Forest was where the most terrible 
fighting of the war occurred? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Were there men killed and wounded all around you? 
A. Every day. 

Q. Were yon also a reader of "BulV'f A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did you enjoy it? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did the reading of it in any way affect your fighting 
over in France f A. Not in the least. 

Q. Did it in any way affect your disposition to join the army 
when you were drafted? A. No, sir. 

Q. Is your division still in France? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. You have been sent over because of your wound ? A. Yes, 
sir, 

Q. Now, Mr. Buckley, while you were over there at the 
front did you see terrible sights? A. Why, I guess not any 
worse than anybody else saw, I guess everybody saw terrible 
sights. 

Q. Well, I want to show you a copy of a picture in "Bull." 
Here is a picture here, or a cartoon, entitled "Humanity and 
Company," with an undertaker clapping his hands. I ask 
you to look at that cartoon, Mr. Buckley. Did you see worse 
in reality than that at the front, Mr. Buckley? A. Why, that 
is a joke compared to what we saw over there. 

Q. Now, the district attorney asked a soldier here if he 
would not take his gim and run when he saw that picture. 
Do you know of an American soldier that would take his gun 
and run if he saw a picture like that ? 

Mr. Osborne — I never asked that. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — Yes, you did. You said "Wouldn't 
you take your gun and run?" 

Mr. Osborne — No, I did not. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — I will get the record. 



424 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Mr. Osborne — ^AU right, get it and you will read it differently 
too. 

Mr. Jeremiah O'Leary — ^And the soldier answered you too. 
They don't all run when they see pictures in this country. 

Q. You say that picture is a joke? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Did the sight of the actual conditions you saw, the dead 
and the wounded, groaning and writhing on the battle fields, 
hold you boys back? A. Why, after a while we got used to 
it and did not mind it at all. 

Q. A soldier who would be stopped by a picture of that kind 
would not be worth a straw to his country, would he, Mr. 
Buckley f A. No, sir. 

Q. Will you tell the jury, Mr. Buckley, just under what 
conditions you fought over there ? Tell them some of the things 
you saw and that you experienced. Tell the jury that, so that 
they will know just what the real picture is. Go right ahead. 
A. Well the last night I was there was about seven o'clock. 
We got orders to go to the front; that was in the Argonne; 
we marched all night in the rain ; we got lost ; scouts came out 
to take us up to our positions. They got lost and we went 
around in mud and rain all night, and finally about five o'clock 
we got up to the Aire River. A major came along and ordered 
us back ; it was too light to take our positions. So they ordered 
us back in the woods, after marching all night in the rain, about 
three miles back. They told us to go to bed ; we unrolled our 
packs and laid down in the rain and slept about an hour, and 
an order came from the Colonel that we had to go ahead 
and take our positions in the daytime. We rolled our packs 
again and started out and got down to the Aire River. They 
had just blown up a concrete bridge there, and the engineers 
threw over a pontoon bridge. They (the Germans) blew that 
up and another bridge. So we had to ford the stream. All 
along the side of the stream the engineers — there were two or 
three hundred — lay all alongside of the stream, some of them 
with planks and boards on their shoulders and some laying 
in the water with their heads in the water, either dead or 
wounded. We forded the river and when we got to the other 



Cartoon an Amusing Fiasco 425 

side we went up to a position in the village and laid there for 
half an hour. While there, there was a company marching 
along the street, and I think they were all killed with the excep- 
tion of about thirty of the company, 

Q. Were they American soldiers? A. Yes, sir, all Amer- 
icans, in this section. So we went up back in the village. 
They sent one platoon of our company — (they usually have a 
battalion with a regiment), but our company was not with 
the battalion at the time and we were alone with these troops. 
We took our position on the left flank, and got set in a shell 
hole. They were shelling us, and we lost ten of our company 
there while getting entrenched. So we got set there, and 
the order came along that we were to go over to the right 
flank. We went over there and about two o'clock started to 
advance. The waves were starting every forty paces or so. 
The first wave got driven back and they sent the second over. 
The second wave got up half the hill — / don't know how far 
they got, because I got mine then — and I went back to the 
first aid station the best way I could. Our Lieutenant, Flynn, 
came in, wounded. He said about all our platoon — all the 
men — were wounded or gassed. There were about eight hun- 
dred ahead of me in the first aid station then. And we laid in 
the first aid station all day, and that night went down to the 
field hospital. On the way to the field hospital, there were 
big banks along the road, and at one place there was an embank- 
ment with five men standing up. They were all dead. You 
would think they were ready to shoot. A shell had exploded 
there. Some of them were not hit at all, or some got their 
heads fractured by concussion. 

Q. The only point I had in mind was that the actual con- 
ditions of fighting were far worse than anybody had in mind? 
A. Oh, yes, you cannot describe it; you had to see it. 

Q. Were you a part of the army that captured the St. 
Mihiel salient ? A. We were there the night of the drive, but we 
did not go over. We were in reserve behind the artillery. 
The second day we took up the advance. 

Q. Do you know, Mr. Buckley, of a single relative of mine 



426 My Political Trial and Experiences 

in our family between the years of 21 and 31, the draft years, 
that has not either volunteered or been drafted or done service 
in the army ? A. No, sir. 

Q. What was the name of the first soldier you saw dead in 
Europe f A. Michael Kennedy. 

Q. Were you at the Hotel Worden, Lake George, on the 
first Sunday in September, Mr, Buckley, when I was on my 
way to the Adirondacks ? A. What year ? 

Q. 1917. A. Yes. 

Q. Did I meet you there accidentally? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Tell the jury about that. A. I was having dinner in the 
Hotel Worden, Sunday, and after dinner I came out, and 
just as I stepped out of the dining room into the office the 
first one I met was Mr. O'Leary and his wife and children. 
I was surprised to see them. He (the defendant) looked kind 
of bad and acted kind of nervous, and I asked him what he 
was doing up there, and he said he was not well and needed 
a rest, and wSiS on his way to Montreal on an automobile trip. 

Q. What was that date in September, about? When was 
that? The first, second or third of September? A. The first 
or second, I do not know which.* 

Q. You know, Mr. Buckley, don't you, from common talk 
in Glens Falls, that I was up in the Adirondacks during the 
whole of September, 1917? A. Yes, sir. 

Q. I stopped at your mother's house on my way back and 
bid her good bye? A. Yes, sir. 



• Victorlca had testified that I had met her on one of the alleged ocoa- 
slona at Long Beach in the month of September, 1917. The Government later 
conceded (when forced by proof) that I had a perfect alibi to that drug dream. 



XIX 
STEPHEN JOHNSON SCORES HEAVILY. 

The next witness was Stephen W. Johnson who made the 
"soap-box" famous. In a very quiet and impressive manner 
he told his story. It was a sensation and scored heavily. He 
related how Madame Victorica in the early part of April 
and the latter part of July had attended Irish meetings; how 
the woman obtruded herself upon him, and how, in the latter 
part of July, 1917, she came to a street meeting at 37th Street 
and Broadway, New York, while Willard J. Robinson was 
speaking and asked him who Robinson was ? This was in direct 
contradiction of Victorica who had testified that she had met 
Robinson in March and again in June. Mr. Johnson's testi- 
mony was so extremely important that I have set it forth al- 
most in its entirety : 

By Mr. Arthur O'Leary — Q. Mr. Johnson, what is your oc- 
cupation? A, I am a salesman for the Catholic Art Associa- 
tion, New York. 

Q. Where were you born ? A. City of Cork, Ireland. 

Q. Have you ever attended college? A. Yes. 

Q. What college? A. Clongowes Wood, Kildare, Ireland, 

Q. What kind of a college is that? A. It is conducted by 
the Jesuits ; one of the principal Catholic colleges in Ireland. 
It is a private college, conducted by the Jesuit Fathers. 

Q. Did you have any prominent fellow students there, or 
men who afterwards became prominent, whom you knew? 
A. Yes, there were students from all the prominent Catholic 
families in Ireland. 

Q. Was Major William Redmond one of your fellow stu- 
dents ? A. Yes, John Redmond's son was a classmate of mine. 

Q. Was Major Redmond killed in the war? A. No; his 
uncle was. This is John Redmond's son. 

427 



428 My Political Trial and fixperiences 

Q. Anybody else you care to mention? A. Mr. Louis How- 
ard. 

Q. Who is he? A. He is a prominent journaHst now; John 
Redmond's nephew. 

Q. What was your course of study there? A. A classical 
course, a course in modern languages. 

Q. Did you ever study American History? A. We studied 
a lot of it. I took a special course in American history. 

Q. At that college were you the honor man in modern 
languages? A, I was. 

Q. Now, Mr. Johnson, you have been interested in what they 
call the Irish Cause in this country, have you not ? A. I have. 
I was president of the 1776 Branch of the Friends of Irish 
Freedom. 

Q. Were you one of the organizers of the Friends of Irish 
Freedom? A. Yes, I was appointed organizer by the national 
body. 

Q. Your name has been mentioned here in connection with 
the Sulzer's Harlem River Park Meeting. Did you preside at 
that meeting ? A. I did. 

Q. What part did you take? A. I was chairman of the meet- 
ing. 

Q. Will you tell us, Mr, Johnson, in your own way, what 
you remember or recollect of the speakers that night at the 
meeting at Sulzer's Harlem River Park Casino that was held 
in August, 1917? A. The meeting was organized for the 
purpose of keeping the branches of the Friends of Irish Free- 
dom then in existence going through the Summer months, 
and we intended to have Dr. Patrick McCarton, envoy of the 
Irish Republic to this country there as the principal speaker 
of the evening. The meeting was arranged to have a recep- 
tion to him and to get together the Irish people of New York 
to receive him publicly. Some of the speakers were Mr. Peter 
Golden, Mr. Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Mr. John D. Moore, and 
Mr. Shugrue, Dr. McCarton was to speak also. The meeting 
was opened by Mr. Shugrue. He introduced me as per- 
manent chairman of the evening. I made some remarks, telling 



Stephen Johnson Scores Heavily 429 

why the meeting was called, the objects of the meeting, after 
which I introduced Mr. Peter Golden. 

He spoke about the situation in Ireland, gave a review of 
the Sinn Fein movement in Ireland and referred to early Irish 
history and the long struggle that the Irish waged through 
diiferent periods and Ireland's different wars with England, 
from early days down to the present. Then we had a song 
by an Irish tenor, and Mr. O'Leary was the next speaker. His 
speech was what I would call a review of the military record of 
the Irish race in America from the days of the Revolution 
down to the present day. He referred to the different wars in 
which Irish Generals took part with great honor, and named 
many men including Montgomery, Wayne, Sullivan and Barry. 
He mentioned President Lincoln and referred to him as the 
great exponent of Democracy, went a bit into the Civil War 
and referred to the drafted men there who were willing to iight 
for America and yet believed in Irish Independence. 

Q. Can you remember with any more particularity the in- 
cidents you just referred to in regard to the drafted men who 
believed in Irish Freedom and were willing to fight for the 
United States ? A. Yes. 

Q. Do you remember an incident about the raising of hands 
or anything of that kind ? A. I do. When President Lincoln's 
name was mentioned, an outburst of applause^ — very consider- 
able applause^ — sprung up and went all over the hall. It seemed 
to surprise the speaker, it seemed to stop him in his remarks, 
so he turned and looking down at the newspaper men said that 
five thousand men and women here of the Irish race cheered 
Lincoln's name for about three or four minutes. Then he 
looked over the audience and hesitated. He asked how many 
drafted men were present, and a great number of hands went 
up. He looked over the audience again and said, "Three hun- 
dred men of Irish blood want to see Ireland free." He said 
to the newspaper men, "Put that down, that three hundred 
men of Irish blood fighting for the United States want to see 
old Ireland free." He continued to urge on the people the 
necessity of supporting America in the war. He also made a 



430 My Political Trial and Experiences 

remark — as I remember it — that when you were fighting for 
America you were fighting for Ireland. 

Q. At that meeting did Jeremiah O'Leary at any time say 
in words or in substance as follows, to these drafted men who 
had raised their hands or to anybody else: *'Do you want to 
help out England before Ireland is free?" And did they 
answer, "No"? A. He did not. 

Q. Or did he say in words or substance or effect to any- 
body there: "Would you be willing to go over and fight by 
the side of the British for England?" And did they answer: 
"No, no." A. He did not. 

Q. Did you attend, or were you present at a meeting of the 
'76 Branch of the Friends of Irish Freedom in October, 1917, 
at Terrace Garden, in the Assembly Rooms? A. Yes. 

Q. Did Jeremiah O'Leary speak there that night? A. He 
did. I invited him. 

Q. Do you remember any particular incident that occurred 
there in regard to his speech and with regard to something 
he said to the audience or anything of that kind? Tell us 
what you remember of the speech. A. The general tenor of 
the speech that night was : He gave a resume of how the Con- 
stitution of the United States came into being. He referred 
to the Alien and Sedition Laws that were passed in the time of 
the Presidency of Adams, how Jefferson opposed these laws 
by a system of quiet pamphleteering. How he came into the 
Presidency, and he urged — he almost made what some of the 
fellows in the hall called a recruiting speech — even those who 
were not citizens to join the army, to enlist and join. He told 
them that they must be very careful in all their remarks not 
to violate any law; and that it was their duty to obey the 
laws. In his speech he also showed them how they could carry 
on a campaign for Irish Freedom without violating any of 
the laws in America, and urged them to continue to do that. He 
rebuked the audience on account of a song sung there before 
he spoke, citing it as an opportunity for evilly disposed persons 
to base a complaint upon it and say we were disloyal. 

Q. Do you remember what that song was ? A. Yes, I know 



Stephen Johnson Scores Heavily 431 

the song, the words of it. It was a song they used to sing 
in Ireland when the English were carrying on a very extensive 
recruiting campaign in Ireland for recruits — a song ridiculing 
recruiting. 

Q. And he stopped the singing of that song? A. Yes, he 
advised that it be stopped ; that it be not sung. 

Q. A historical song? A. No, it was a rather comical song, I 
should call it. 

Q. Did any of the people laugh at it ? A. Yes. 

Q. It excited mirth? A. Yes. 

Q. Were you connected, Mr. Johnson, or associated with 
some street meetings that were held in New York in the 
summer of 1917, around 37th Street and Broadway? A. I was. 

Q. Were you here in court when Mme. Victorica testified? 
A. Yes. 

Q. Had you ever seen her on prior occasions to the time 
you saw her in court ? A. I had. 

Q. When did you first see her prior to that occasion? A. 
At a meeting in Carnegie Hall, the Anniversary Celebration of 
the Irish Revolution. 

Q. Do you remember the date of that meeting? A. It was 
either April 7th or 8th, 1917. 

Q. Did you speak to Mme. Victorica on that occasion or 
did she speak to you. A. She spoke to me first. 

Q. Will you tell us what happened, or the conversations and 
relate the circumstances. 

A. I was standing wearing a badge, the tri-color badge of 
the Irish Republic in front of the middle passage going in, 
and received the people as they were going in. A woman 
came up to me and said there was a lady standing nearby that 
wanted some information. I asked her what it was and she 
said it was something about the meeting. I walked over to her 
and introduced myself and volunteered any information I 
could give. She said that she knew it was an Irish meeting 
and wanted to know the aims and objects of it. I told her 
what the purpose of the meeting was. She seemed anxious to 



432 My Political Trial and Experiences 

meet the speakers that were to speak that evening and asked me 
who they were. I named one or two. She asked me if I 
could arrange for her to meet them. I told her I did not think 
I could. We said a few passing words. The meeting began 
shortly afterwards, and I escorted her and her companion in 
and left them there. 

Q. Did you see them again on that occasion? A. Yes; I 
was standing there after the meeting was over. She said 
it was a very fine meeting, and then asked me if I could ar- 
range to meet them (the speakers) then. I did not want to 
have her meet them there, didn't know, didn't want to be 
bothered, and I told her I didn't think I could. 

The Court — ^Who asked you that? 

The Witness — Mme. Victorica. 

The Court — In the first place her companion asked you, 
I understood you to say? 

The Witness — Yes, she approached me first. 

The Court — And that first conversation was with her com- 
panion ? 

The Witness — ^Yes. During a part of it she brought me 
over to Mme. Victorica. 

Q. Did you ever see her after that, prior to her appearance, 
or prior to the time you saw her in court ? A. Yes, I saw her 
at 37th Street and Broadway. 

Q. Were there articles in the newspapers about those meet- 
ings, and were they written up to considerable extent in the 
newspapers? A. In August they were. 

Q. And attracted a lot of public attention ? A. Yes, at that 
time. Prior to that time they did not attract much attention. 

Q. About how big were the crowds that used to be there 
at night on the occasion of those meetings? A. Around that 
time when the papers called much attention to them, I should 
say there were sometimes as high as nine or ten thousand 
people present. 

Q. You say you saw this woman on the occasion of one of 
those street meetings at night? A. Yes. 



Stephen Johnson Scores Heavily 433 

Q. Was there a big crowd there that night? A. No; there 
were about I should say seven or eight hundred people. 

Q. What were you doing there that night ? A. I was stand- 
ing outside of a store window, talking to a few people on the 
sidewalk. , i .i%j'| 

Q. Do you remember any of the speakers that were speaking 
that night? A. Yes. When I was there, Robinson was the 
speaker. 

Q. Is that the Robinson that has been referred to here in 
this trial? A. Yes. 

Q. Willard J. Robinson ? A. Yes ; and Mme. Victorica was 
with this same person she was with at Carnegie Hall, and she 
approached me and said "good evening — " 

Q. What kind of arrangement did they have there for speak- 
ers ? A. We had a special-made stand to speak from, a raised 
platform. 

Q. About how big was it, and how was it constructed? A. 
There were four legs to it, made from hollow gas pipe, and 
then there was a wooden platform made about four feet square 
and about three feet or four feet from the ground high, and 
a little railing in front made of hollow gas pipe also. 

Q. What happened? A. She asked me if she could speak 
to me for a while. I said, "y^s," and we withdrew to the side- 
walk and she asked me why I did not ring her up, I said I for- 
got all about it. So she said that she wanted to talk to me. 
I said "all right," or something, and she said "we can't talk 
here," and suggested that we go somewhere to have a con- 
versation. I let her do the talking and she suggested we go 
to a restaurant. 

Q. Was anything said about speaking? A. Yes; we were 
standing there; I was listening to the talk for a few minutes 
and the conversation was kind of intermittent after she had first 
suggested we go. We were listening to the talk for a minute, 
listening to the speakers. 

Q. Do you remember who was speaking when Mme. Victor- 
ica spoke to you ? A. Yes ; Robinson was speaking. 

Q. Was anything said by her or by you in regard to the 



434 My Political Trial and Experiences 

speaker? A. She asked me who the speaker was* and I told 
her. 

Q. Did you say anything? A. I told her his name was Rob- 
inson. 

Q. Was that the same Robinson that was referred to here, 
Willard J. Robinson? A. Yes. 

Q. Did he have a moustache on? A. No. 

Q. Then what happened? A. Why, she suggested that we 
go to a restaurant, as she wanted to talk to me ; so I said, "all 
right." And she went up the street a bit and talked to a taxi- 
cab driver there, and then she came back and said something 
to the woman she was with and beckoned to me. So we walked 
up to the taxicab and we got in there, and we drove down to the 
Hofbrau Haus. 

Q. Where is the Hofbrau Haus? A. At 30th Street, off of 
Broadway. 

Q. Is it on Broadway or on a cross street? A. It is on both, 
but the entrance was on 30th Street where we stopped. 

Q. Then what happened? A. We went in and sat down at 
a table and had something to eat. She talked about Buenos 
Aires and Ireland, and asked me about the Irish question and 
what I was doing in it. I told her. She then told me that what 
she wanted to talk to me about was a scenario that she wanted 
to write for somebody in Buenos Aires — some nezvspaper, 
some enterprise or newspaper men, who wanted to put out a 
story in moving pictures — and that she wanted to get acquainted 
with the Irish leaders, so that she could get different aspects 
of the Irish question from different men. 

Q. Did she mention any names? A. No, she did not men- 
tion any. 

Q. Do you remember what Robinson was talking about that 
night while he was speaking at that street meeting? A. I re- 
member one or two things ; I do not remember his whole speech, 
because we did not get there in the beginning. 

Q. Just tell us the trend of his talk, if you can remember 
it, or as much of it as you can remember? A. He was talking, 
while we were standing there — as I recollect — about a trip 



* Victorlca had testified that she bad met Robinson prior to this occaalon. 



Stephen Johnson Scores Heavily 435i 

that he made to the other side. He was complaining about 
an American passport that he had, having to he 0. K.'d by the 
British Consul on his way back, and he was trying to show from 
that — giving that as an example, that American rights at sea 
were awfully ignored — that England had control of the sea, 
and was holding up American citizens, and would not recognise 
American passports, or something to that effect. 

Q. I do not know whether we fixed the time of that meet- 
ing or not, but what was the time of this meeting about, the 
street meeting we are discussing? A. You mean the time of 
the evening? 

Q. The time of the year? A. It was around the middle of 
July. 

Q. You are sure it was in the middle of Julyf A. Yes. 

Q. 1917? A. Yes. 

Q. Continue and tell us the conversation between you and 
Mme. Victorica at the Hofbrau-Haus, where I interrupted you. 
Did she ask you any question? A. Yes, she asked me, she 
wanted to know who the most important men were that were 
at the head of the Irish movement in this country, and she 
wanted to meet those men. 

Q. Did you give her any names f A. I gave her names of 
quite a number of men. 

Q. Can you remember any names you gave herf A. Yes; 
I told her the men I knew at the head of the Friends of Irish 
Freedom. 

Q. Who were they? A. I mentioned Herbert's name. 

Q. Who was Herbert? A. Victor Herbert, the National 
President. 

Q. He is the composer? A. The American composer. And 
I mentioned O'Leary's name and O'Neil Ryan from St. Louis. 

Q. When you mentioned O'Leary's name, do you remember 
any comment being made, or did she act as though she knew 
him ? A. Not at the time, no. 

Q. Did she afterwards? A. Yes; we talked about him 
afterwards, talked about a few of them in there. 

Q. Did you get an impression that this woman knew him 



436 My Political Trial and Experiences 

or did not know him? A. The impression that I had was 
she knew of him; I do not know whether she knew him per- 
sonally, she knew his name and seemed to know something 
about him. 

Q. Did she say whether or not she ever met him ? A. No ; I 
do not remember. 

Q. What other names were mentioned, if you can recol- 
lect? A. I told about Father York, who was very prominent 
in San Francisco. 

Q. Was she interested in him? A. Yes, a little bit. 

Q. Did she seem to know him ? A. No. 

Q. Do you remember any other names you mentioned? A. 
Yes ; I mentioned Father Cantwell, in New Jersey. 

Q. Who is he ? A. He was editor of the "Monitor," a news- 
paper out there. / mentioned Ryan, of Buffalo, and Kelly of 
New York, and John D. Moore, I may have mentioned others. 

Q. Can you remember anything else that was said there dur- 
ing that conversation ? A. Why, we talked about the City of 
Buenos Aires somewhat, and about myself. She asked me 
where I was born, what kind of work I was doing in the move- 
ment, and different personal questions. 

Q. Did you notice anything peculiar about her conduct or 
manner or anything of that kind ? A. The thing I noticed about 
her most was the accent she had. 

Q. What kind of an accent did she have? A. Well, I did not 
know at the time whether it was Spanish or French; and I 
asked her the question. 

Q. Did you hear her accent while she was on the witness 
stand here? A. I did. 

Q. Did you notice any difference? A. I did not think it 
was the same. I thought she had a much more refined accent 
here. 

Q. Can you remember anything else about what happened 
there at the Hofbrau Haus? A. Yes, she left the table rather 
suddenly, and came back again after about Hve minutes and 



Stephen Johnson Scores Heavily 437 

rather abruptly said that she was not feeling well and was 
going home. 

Q. Did she go home or did she leave? A. Yes; we went 
out and she took a taxicab and said good night on the street 
there and left. 

Q. Was anything said there or at the table about this man 
Robinson? A, Not very much. We were talking about the 
street meetings and she said he seemed to be a very forcible 
speaker and wanted to know if he was very prominent in the 
movement, I told her "no," and she wanted to know if we 
spoke often on the street. That was about all, I think. 

Q. Are you sure, Mr. Johnson, that when this woman first 
spoke to you at the street meeting that evening that she wanted 
to know who Willard J. Robinson was? A. Yes. 

Q. She did not seem to know who he was? A. No. 

Q. During the whole evening, in the course of your con- 
versation with her, did she indicate or show in any way that 
she knew him, or had ever met himf A. No. 

Q. Was anything said or done between Mme, Victorica and 
yourself in regard to getting in touch with you again? A. Yes; 
she gave me her telephone number and asked me to ring her up. 

Q. Did she at any time on the occasion of either of those 
two meetings give you her name? A. Yes. The first time she 
gave me her name. That was at Carnegie Hall. 

Q. What was that name? A. As I understood it, why it 
was Mme. V ussier e. 

Q. Did she ever tell you her name was Victorica? A. No. 

Q. Did she tell you anything about her matrimonial troubles ? 
A. No. 

Q. Did she tell you she had engaged Mr. O'Leary as her 
lawyer in regard to her matrimonial troubles? A. No. 

Q. Did you ever know she had engaged Mr. O'Leary as 
her lawyer in her matrimonial troubles? A. No. 

Q. Did she by her speech, manner of conduct or in any 
way state that she knew Mr. O'Leary or had consulted him 



438 My Political Trial and Experiences 

in regard to her matrimonial troubles? A. I did not know 
whether she knew him or not from her conversation. 

Q. Did you ever see her again after that, or seek her? A. 
No, not until in court here. 

Q. The next occasion you saw her after that was in court? 
A. Yes. 




On the Witness Stand. 



XX 

DEFENDANT ON THE STAND. 

On Thursday (February 27) a surprise was given to the 
opposing counsel, and to every one else in the courtroom, 
including myself, when Mr. Felder, my chief counsel, arose 
and called me to the stand. About fifty witnesses on my behalf 
remained uncalled. I insisted upon calling all of them but the 
case had taken a long time and, importuned to save time, I 
gave way. Under his questioning I related how "Bull" had 
been barred from the mails. It developed in the examination 
that the reason given in the correspondence by Postmaster 
Patten, of the New York Post Office, was not that "Bull" was 
creating mutiny and insubordination, or obstructing recruit- 
ing, but that "Bull" was not a publication under the law, and 
that it was not issued regularly. My testimony revealed that 
it had never skipped a month, was always published on time 
and that the July and August numbers had actually passed 
through the mails and had reached the subscribers, all of 
which greatly surprised the jury. The newspapers admitted 
next day that I had scored heavily. My testimony on Thurs- 
day and on Friday was largely devoted to refutation of Vic- 
torica's testimony. I produced the "New York World" of 
May 10th, 1915, to show that Wiener, a Government witness, 
was mistaken when he said that the "Lusitania Forum" of the 
American Truth Society was not suspended during the pend- 
ency of diplomatic negotiations, I also testified that I was 
in the Adirondacks in September, 1917, at the time Victorica 
alleged that I was at Long Beach in company with John T. 
Ryan. On Monday, March 3, I resumed the stand, and for 
a whole day discussed American history; described the devel- 
opment of the Colonies, the causes of the American Revolution, 
the Revolution itself and the diplomatic history of the country 
up to and including the period of the Civil War ; the War of 

439 



440 My Political Trial and Experiences 

1812, the Mexican War and the Civil War, and the relation 
of each of these conflicts to the national development. I dis- 
coursed somewhat upon the "waves of immigration from 
Europe," and the effect of these upon American ideals and 
character, I revealed the British propaganda in all the phases 
of its insidious, dangerous, pernicious, un-American and in- 
cessant character and declared that it began operations when 
the Treaty which recognized America's Independence was 
signed by Britain's envoys, quoting in support of this state- 
ment the assurance of the British Minister to George III. that 
"America, your Most Gracious Majesty, may yet be yours." 

I next showed that in its early stages British propaganda 
aimed to prevent men of English and Scotch blood from emi- 
grating to America, by circulating viciously false reports in 
England and Scotland about the American people. I instanced 
a colloquy between Davus and Geta, staged at Westminster 
School — an institution attended by the children of the elite 
of England — in which Americans were held up to scorn and 
ridicule as "ex-convicts, loafers, descendants of malcontents," 
and as "immoral, rough, vulgar, brutal and barbarous." I 
used a book written in 1819 by Robert Walsh, of Philadelphia, 
an associate of Matthew Carey,* and I used the "Olive Branch," 
by Carey himself to illustrate the workings of British propa- 
ganda in those years closely following the Revolution. I 
also related facts concerning the Louisiana Purchase, the 
Florida Purchase and the Lewis and Clark expedition to 
the northwest, and how the news of these great events was 
received in England. I quoted Lord Lansdowne's speech 
in 1828 on England's attitude toward the acquisition of Florida. 
I referred pointedly to England's aggressions over the Mos- 
quito Tract in Central America, now known as British Hon- 
duras, and showed their relation to the Panama Canal ques- 
tion and to the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty. I quoted from speeches 
made by American Ambassadors in England and British 
replies thereto, to demonstrate how "Americans in London 
surrender their birthright, while Englishmen claim it." 

I read the Cecil Rhodes will, Carnegie's utterances, Hal- 



* Irish economist, writer and publisher. 



Defendant on the Stand 441 

dane's speech at Montreal, Chamberlain's "wading through 
blood" speech in 1898, and John Hay's reference to it. My 
testimony disclosed the propaganda behind the agitation for 
the Arbitration Treaties and the Hundred Years of Peace 
Celebration. I showed how the passage of the Alien and 
Sedition Laws had destroyed the Federal Party and defeated 
John Adams for the Presidency over a hundred years ago. 
I pointed out England's attempt to destroy the Union during 
the Civil War, recalling her ammunition traffic during those 
dark days ; how she built pirate cruisers like the famous "Ala- 
bama," the "Florida," the "Georgia," the "Shenandoah" and 
others which preyed upon our commerce, actually driving it 
from the seas and destroying to this day the maritime prestige 
America then held. I also dwelt upon the loans England made 
to the Confederacy aggregating the enormous sums of $1,100,- 
000,000, a fabulous amount in those days. 

There was no phase of American history that escaped my 
attention during this part of my testimony. Coming down 
to the events of the immediate present, I paid my respects to 
the pro-British and un-American press and expressed what I 
conceived to be the only just comment any American could 
make upon the Wilson-Gregory gag law. I contended that 
long before the United States Senate had grown solicitous 
over Washington's Farewell Address and its sage counsels of 
real Americanism, Irishmen in America had been proclaiming 
those precepts and urged adherence to the only real national 
policy the United States ever possessed. To the utter conster- 
nation of my lawyers and the greater consternation of the 
government attorneys I declared that "William McAdoo had 
no legal or constitutional right to sign the name of the Ameri- 
can people to checks payable to the order of Great Britain, 
France, Italy, Russia or any other foreign nation." I further 
testified that the only way loans of American resources 
could be lawfully made to foreign powers was by treaty by 
and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and that I did 
not believe that the United States was now in any constitutional 
or legal position to collect these loans a,mounting to billions 



442 My Political Trial and Experiences 

of hard earned American dollars, save by treaty or by war. I 
admitted frankly that I opposed the sending of American 
soldiers to Europe because George Washington had admon- 
ished my country against it and declared that no American 
President save and except Thomas Woodrow Wilson had ever 
favored such a radical departure from the most cherished of 
American traditions. 

I denied that I had called President Wilson an autocrat or 
monarch at the Lexington Avenue meeting as testified to by 
the Gonzales woman, and asserted that had I done so I would 
not be afraid to admit it because he had proved himself to 
be an autocrat in his treatment of Congress. Nor was I op- 
posed to the draft. Had I been opposed to it — by my very 
nature outspoken as it has always been — I would have left 
sufficient evidence behind me to ensure my conviction by docu- 
ments making it altogether unnecessary for the Government to 
secure the oral testimony of a woman of the character of Gon- 
zales who had brazenly asserted that the Irish Relief Bazaar 
workers had conspired to resist the draft. Had I been opposed 
to the draft, I would have spoken out and openly against it, 
since I fear neither jail nor scafifold when a question of my 
convictions on any subject is involved. I described my trip 
West, the state of my health at the time, my arrest and return. 
I was not permitted to relate the brutal treatment to which I 
had been subjected while a prisoner at Bellevue Hospital at 
the hands of officials and agents of the Department of Justice 
while I was suffering from Spanish Influenza during the 
epidemic which raged during the pestilential months of Oc- 
tober and November, 1918. Letters and documents were pro- 
duced in the case which proved that I had aided in recruiting. 
One communication addressed to a yeoman in the navy pointed 
out proper methods which should be followed in interesting 
"the youth of our country in the navy." 

My direct testimony was concluded on March 1 3th. Cross- 
examination was conducted by Assistant United States District 
Attorney James W. Osborne, Jr. From the beginning of the 
examination until the end, two and one-half days later, there 



Defendant on the Stand 443 

was not the sHghtest proof that by request or suggestion, I 
ever asked for or received any of the "German money" with 
which my pockets were supposed to be lined, if one were to be- 
lieve the wild and fantastic stories circulated in the pro-British 
press during the previous three or four years. On the con- 
trary, it developed that I had sacrificed my time, business, 
money, health and even my liberty for the very ideals, the 
very traditions now uppermost in the public mind in the general 
American reaction to the Smuts-Wilson League of Nations. 
On Thursday, March 6th, I offered in evidence a check for 
$1,500, drawn by me to the credit of the American Truth 
Society, and deposited in the Public Bank of New York. 
"That's another check I found in my papers to show that I 
have donated and loaned large amounts of money to the So- 
ciety," I remarked, as the check was marked in evidence. 
Before this, other checks, totalling over $3,000, had been pro- 
duced. I explained that these were not all, mentioning another 
transaction where I had "paid a poor printer $1,000 for a 
printing bill, rather than see him lose any money." 

I had been unable to compute accurately — because the Gov- 
ernment had seized my check stubs and books — the grand total 
of donations and loans, both to "Bull" and to the American 
Truth Society. I explained how I had financed a book I had 
written, entitled, "The Fable of John Bull and Uncle Sam," 
which cost me $2,000 to publish, and while I had a good and 
a legitimate opportunity t© make a handsome profit on the 
sale of the book, I had given the Society the profits, which 
amounted to more than $1,000. The public had been led by 
the corrupt yellow press to expect tremendous disclosures 
from this cross-examination, but none came. The only point 
the Government scored — if it could be called a point — was 
that when I had testified before the Grand Jury in reference 
to the Ridder letter, I had expressed an opinion that Ridder 
wanted Germany to win, while at this trial I reversed that 
opinion or belief. Mr. Osborne, by his smile of satisfaction, 
seemed to think that he had scored a great point, but, as a 
matter of fact, the affair was of little consequence, since I had 



444 My Political Trial and Experiences 

explained that at the time of my appearance before the Grand 
Jury, I was angry at Ridder, being under the impression that 
he had betrayed a confidential communication, and believing 
that a man "who could do such a thing could also be untrue 
to his country"; while, knowing now that Ridder swore that 
he did not betray the communication, I had changed my 
opinion and no longer believed Ridder capable of desiring his 
country's defeat. Absolutely nothing was developed by Mr. 
Osborne tending in any manner or degree to support any of the 
contentions of the prosecution, or any of the Government 
theories. 

I admitted that I was a friend of John Devoy; that the 
"Gaelic- American" was a journal which advocated Ireland's 
freedom; that I knew John T. Ryan; and Willard Robinson; 
but denied absolutely and unequivocally that to my knowledge 
John T. Ryan ever met Victorica or Willard Robinson. I 
agreed that Ryan and myself had probably disappeared at about 
the same time in May, 1918, but there was no prearranged 
plan or concert in our doing so. My departure was for the 
purpose of attending to a law case in Reno, Nevada, and it 
was not until I arrived at Ogden, Utah, that any thought came 
into my mind that I should remain away from my trial. The 
decision then formed to remain away was made because of 
the Government's persecution of me and my belief that as a 
result of it I could not get a square deal. 

I related the incidents surrounding the Wise letter, the 
efforts of Mr. Barnes to force this case to trial while I was 
without a lawyer, and slowly convalescing from an operation 
for appendicitis ; how I had lost over twenty pounds in weight, 
how my physician had advised me that I should have at least 
two months to recuperate before undergoing the strain of the 
trial, and that if I were to be subjected to the ordeal of a longer 
trial, I should have a longer period for rest and recuperation. 

Perhaps the most interesting parts of my examination were 
the occasions when I offered in evidence the statement Vic- 
torica made in my office on April 17, 1917. I had previously 
called my stenographer who was present and wrote it in short- 



Defendant on the Stand 445 

hand, afterwards transcribing it on the typewriter, after which 
it had been filed away with the papers in the case. When I 
returned from the West and went upon the witness stand for 
John, his lawyer handed me the statement and asked me to 
look at it for the apparent purpose of offering it in evidence. 
I took it from his hand and scrutinized it carefully. Instead 
of returning it to the Court, I put it in my pocket. There 
was consternation in the courtroom. Col. Felder was indig- 
nant, while Mr. Barnes smiled. The Court then admonished 
me to return it, upon which I declared, "That statement is a 
confidential communication between attorney and client which 
the law forbids making public. The Government has Mme. 
Victorica in its custody. If the Government brings the woman 
here and in open court she waives her privilege, I'll gladly 
produce it, because it will vindicate me, but to produce it with- 
out her consent would, under the laws of New York, be a 
crime. I certainly shall not permit this Court to commit a 
crime, and I know the Court is not going to do it." The Court 
promptly sustained me. So I put the statement in my purse 
and kept it on my person until called to testify in my own trial 
when I pulled it out of the purse where it had been since June 
21, 1918, almost a year, and slowly unfolded it to disclose it or 
to force the prosecution to object to its admission on the ground 
that it was privileged, upon which my lawyers were ready to 
subpoena Victorica to Court and place her on the stand and 
compel her if possible, to waive her privilege and permit me to 
make the statement public. 

This statement, I consider to be the strongest and most con- 
vincing proof of the status of Victorica. She came to me as 
a client and later as a spy. If the British Government under- 
took to conspire, to "frame up" an Irishman in America, the 
most likely method it would pursue would be to secure an in- 
terview with its victim upon a business pretense. It was a very 
simple matter for the British to send a woman, a Parisian as 
Victorica appeared to be, from Kirkwall where neutral ships 
were compelled to enter, or for that matter to put her on board 
in a harbor in Norway, where Victorica claimed she took pas- 



446 My Political Trial and Experiences 

sage, equip her with all necessary papers and send her to 
America with instructions to lay the foundation for some "Irish 
plot" which would be exploded by the British at a crucial 
moment. I was on my guard against just such a plan and 
therefore, I protected myself well in this instance when this 
woman introduced by a friend, came to my office first seeking 
advice and finally employing me in a law case which she never 
pushed. With this introduction I set forth the statement in 
full, just as it was written and preserved : 

"Marie de Vissieres, of the Hotel Netherlands, 59th St., and 
5th Ave., New York City, called at the office of Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary on April 17th, 1917, at 3 P. M., and made the follow- 
ing statement: She says that on the 4th of September, 1905, 
she was married to Manuel Victorica in Buenos Aires, Argen- 
tina, and she also resided in Santiago, Chile. Following her 
marriage she lived with her husband for six months, two 
months of which were spent in Buenos Aires, and the other 
four months in South Chile. After this time it appears that 
her husband became insane and was confined in a private insane 
asylum in Belgrano, which is a suburb of Buenos Aires. It 
appears that Mrs. Victorica learned afterwards that he had 
been insane before his marriage. He continued to be confined 
in this asylum for a period of about five years. It appears 
that about seven years ago she lost track of him, that is to say 
he disappeared. The last information that she had of him was 
that he went to the United States, but she has never been 
able to get any track of him here. Mrs. Victorica has been 
in this country about 3^4 years. She came here from Buenos 
Aires and has been living in New York City ever since that 
time. She has made numerous efforts to get information about 
the location of her husband but has failed to ascertain his 
whereabouts. She states that so far as she knows he cannot 
be located and in her opinion that perhaps he may be dead. 

There were no children by their marriage. What she wants 
is a separation or divorce upon the grounds that he has been 
missing for 7 years, if this is possible under the laws of the 
State of New York. She says that during the 3^4 years 



Defendant on the Stand 447 

she has been in the City she has resided the greater part of 
the time at hotels and considers herself a resident of the city. 
She says that she is not a citizen of the United States, that she 
has not applied for citizenship papers, but that she intends to 
maintain her residence in the State of New York. So far as 
Mrs. Victorica knows, she thinks her husband has friends and 
relatives at Fort Wayne, Indiana, and in the City of New 
York, but she has never met any of them. All that she has 
is her husband's word for it. The last she heard of him was 
when he was living at the Hotel Phoenix at Palermo, a suburb 
of Buenos Aires. This vv^as about 8 years ago. She says that 
she has made inquires during the last 3^ years to see whether 
or not he went back to Buenos Aires. That one inquiry was 
answered but that the others were not; that the last inquiry, 
which was answered, said that they had not heard from him 
or seen him in Buenos Aires, and that they did not know where 
he was. She also stated that at the time they separated, a 
dispute arose about some money that she had given him, an 
amount exceeding $30,000. She insisted that he should ac- 
knowledge his indebtedness for that sum, but he refused to 
do so. The demand for the acknowledgment was made through 
her lawyer to his attorney. At the time that the demand was 
made she considered him sane. She adds that the doctors told 
her that when he was confined to the insane asylum that it was 
their opinion that he would never be sane. 

Dated, April 17th, 1917. 

Another master stroke of the defense was the complete dis- 
closure I made of the British propaganda in the United States. 
The Government's theory was that my constant attacks upon 
the British propaganda in "Bull" was merely a subterfuge, 
that there was no British propaganda in America, that I was 
fighting a chimera and using it as a veil for a very subtle and 
insidious agitation by which I hoped to create mutiny in the 
army and navy. My defense to this very ingenious but ridicu- 
lous proposition was to point the British propaganda out of 
the mouth of one of the chief British propagandists in America. 
I therefore selected an article — a boasting, I-did-it sort of an 



448 My Political Trial and Experiences 

article — published in the March, 1918, number of Harper's 
Magazine, a monthly controlled by the Morgan interests. The 
article was quite long, but the following brief quotation from 
it will suffice for my readers : 

"Practically since the day war broke out between England 
and the Central Powers I became responsible for American 
publicity, I need hardly say that the scope of my department 
was very extensive and its activities widely ranged. Among 
the activities was a weekly report to the British Cabinet on 
the state of American opinion, and constant touch with the per- 
manent correspondents of American newspapers in England. 
I also frequently arranged for important public men in Eng- 
land to act for us by interviews in American newspapers ; and 
among these distinguished people were Mr. Lloyd George (the 
present Prime Minister), Viscount Grey, Mr. Balfour, Mr. 
Bonar Law, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Sir Edward Car- 
son, Lord Robert Cecil, Mr. Walter Runciman (the Lord 
Chancellor), Mr. Austin Chamberlain, Lord Cromer, Will 
Crooks, Lord Curzon, Lord Gladstone, Lord Haldane, Mr. 
Henry James, Mr. John Redmond, Mr. Self ridge, Mr. Zang- 
will, Mrs. Humphrey Ward, and fully a hundred others. 

"Among other things we supplied three hundred and sixty 
newspapers in the smaller States of the United States with an 
English newspaper, which gives a weekly review and com- 
ment of the affairs of the war. We established connection 
with the man in the street through cinema pictures of the 
Army and Navy, as well as through interviews, articles, pam- 
phlets, etc., and by letters in reply to individual American 
critics, which were printed in the chief newspaper of the 
State in which they lived, and were copied in newspapers of 
other and neighboring States. We advised and stimulated 
many people to write articles ; we utilized the friendly services 
and assistance of confidential friends ; we had reports from im- 
portant Americans constantly, and established associations by 
personal correspondence, with influential and eminent people of 
every profession in the United States, beginning with university 
and college presidents, professors and scientific men, and run- 



Defendant on the Stand 449 

ning through all the ranges of the population. We asked our 
friends and correspondents to arrange for speeches, debates 
and lectures by American citizens, but we did not encourage 
Britishers to go to America and preach the doctrine of entrance 
into the war. Besides an immense private correspondence 
with individuals, we had our documents and literature sent to 
great numbers of public libraries, Y. M. C. A. societies, uni- 
versities, colleges, historical societies, clubs and newspapers. 

"It is hardly necessary to say that the work was one of 
extreme difficulty and delicacy, but I was fortunate in having 
a wide acquaintance in the United States and in knowing 
that a great many people had read my books and were not 
prejudiced against me, I believed that the American people 
could not be driven, preached to or chivied into the war, and 
that when they did enter it would be the result of their own 
judgment and not the result of exhortation, eloquence and fanat- 
ical pressure of Britishers. I believed that the United States 
would enter the war in her own time, and I say this, with a 
convinced mind, that, on the whole, it was best that the Ameri- 
can commonwealth did not enter the war until that month in 
1917 when Germany played her last card of defiance and in- 
direct attack. Perhaps the safest situation that could be im- 
agined actually did arise. The Democratic party in America, 
which probably would not have supported a Republican Presi- 
dent had he declared war, were practically forced by the logic 
of circumstances to support President Wilson when he de- 
clared war, because he had blocked up every avenue of attack." 

No German propagandist ever made such a frank, bold 
admission as this. It astounded the jury and the government, 
also. 

Another bombshell which completely bewildered and dis- 
couraged the Government was my letter to John J. Skelling*, 
dated May 6th, 1917, giving advice upon the best way to 
secure recruits for the navy. The indictment charged me with 
obstructing recruiting. In addition to other irrefutable and 
convincing evidence which disposed of the charge, I sprang 
this letter, which is self-explanatory: 

• Chief Yeoman, U. S. N. 



450 My Political Trial and Experiences 

"May 4th, 1917. 

"Mr dear Mr. Skelling: — With reference to the suggestion 
that I might make a public address on the necessity of our 
young men making up the present enlisted efficiency in the 
Navy, I am very much inclined personally to do what 1 can in 
my own way to render any service that will be of assistance. 

"The question of an efficient Navy is one of preparedness. 
It is important in time of peace, but it is vital in time of war. 
Perhaps if some plan could be worked out giving me an oppor- 
tunity to prepare for it I might be able to do my part in meeting 
the present emergency. 

"Since your object is to interest the young men, those are 
the men who should be appealed to. The most enlightened of 
our young men are unquestionably those who are at present 
either in college or preparing for college. It is easier to reach 
the enlightened than the working classes by an appeal, in times 
like these. There are many institutions in Brooklyn, attended 
by hundreds and thousands of young men, ranging from 
eighteen to twenty-one years of age, and it would seem a rather 
simple matter to name a day when these Institutions would send 
their young men to some suitable hall, and where the question 
could be discussed. 

"At this time it might help a great deal if some old patriotic 
poem or recitation that breathes of naval tradition could be re- 
cited. At the same time, a selected number of sailors could 
give some setting up exercises and a drill given with a suitable 
gun. If moving pictures could be produced showing battle- 
ships in action, or something of that character, to bring the 
subject home to the boys in an objective manner, that would 
help immensely. 

"As to the question of enlisting recruits after the exercises 
and speaking are finished, these details would have to be taken 
care of by your Committee. Of course I realize that my appear- 
ance on a public platform, urging the youth of our Country to 
fill up the gaps in our Navy would perhaps be of more political 
importance than of local importance, because there are a great 
many people in this country who do not understand this war, 



Defendant on the Stand 451 

who feel that we should not be in it, who perhaps are holding 
back because they do not fully appreciate the tremendous im- 
portance that our Navy bears to their security and welfare. 

"If this plan is practicable, a thing that would have to be 
decided by your Committee, I would be pleased to hear from 
you further. 

"Sincerely yours, 

"JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY." 

When I left the witness stand on Friday, March 7th, I had 
been under fire from Mr. Osborne from 10.20 a. m. until after 
6 p. m. ; also all day Thursday and part of Wednesday, and 
had ocupied the witness stand for six and one-half days in all, 
including the direct and cross-examination. I was completely 
exhausted, and had it not been for the prayers of the people, or 
the help of some unseen power, which gave me strength, I 
would have collapsed. 



XXI 
CONCLUSION OF THE TRIAL. 

I know of no better description of what happened immedi- 
ately before and after the trial than the following which was 
pubhshed in the "Gaelic American," of New York : 

"On Sunday, March 23, at 6 P. M., after fifty hours delibera- 
tion, the jury in the case of Jeremiah A. O'Leary rendered a 
verdict of not guilty on four of the five counts in the indictment, 
and disagreed by a vote of nine to three in favor of an acquittal 
on the fifth count. Adolph Stern, the manager of the "Bull" 
Publishing Company, indicted with O'Leary as a conspirator 
with the "Bull" Publishing Company and the American Truth 
Society, was acquitted. The jury was unanimous that O'Leary's 
Americanism had not been impeached, and although admonished 
by the Court that it could go home, it refused to depart, in- 
sisting upon meeting the defendant, who was brought into an- 
other courtroom while the jury was waiting and where he shook 
hands with each juror, who assured him that the only point 
of disagreement was not that his Americanism was in ques- 
tion, but that in the October number of "Bull" he had strongly 
attacked the Government for interfering with his right of free 
press and that three of the jurors were of the opinion that these 
attacks were wilful. Nine, and "The Gaelic American" is in- 
formed, at times eleven were of the opinion that he was always 
within his Constitutional rights. The result was a decisive 
victory for the defendant. The October number was the mildest 
of the three numbers of "Bull" which formed the basis of the 
indictment and therefore one upon which a conviction never 
could be obtained. The verdict was a shock and a smashing 
blow to the prosecution. James W. Osborne, Jr., who was in 
court was plainly disappointed at the outcome. Mr. Osborne, 
who had fought the case hard and ably, had expected a con- 
viction, or at worst a disagreement upon all counts. When the 

452 



Conclusion of the Trial 453 

jury had been polled and the result announced, the prosecutor 
looked at the defendant, who laughed and said : "Well, Jimmy, 
they shot the old indictment full of holes, didn't they? There; 
isn't much of it left now." Osborne smiled blandly and said 
nothing. 

"The scene in the courtrom at this sensational ending of a 
still more sensational trial was dramatic. For two and a half 
days, while the jury was out, a great crowd of the defendants' 
friends awaited anxiously the result. As the hours passed the 
crowd grew larger, until at 11 P. M. the jury was sent by a 
big bus to the Hotel McAlpin for the night. As the bus waited 
the crowd also waited and as the jury entered the bus they 
passed through the waiting crowd which scanned their faces 
for some indication of how they stood, while the whole jury, 
save Foreman Hunter, smiled good naturedly as it passed 
through. 

"Each morning at 10 o'clock the crowd was on hand again 
and waited patiently all day. The days passed slowly. When- 
ever the jury would file in for instructions the crowd would 
rush in and jam the courtroom to its capacity, the Marshals 
being very lenient, permitting the people even to stand in any 
available space in order to give everybody an opportunity to 
see and hear. Throughout the trial Marshal McCarthy and 
Deputies McQuade and Bowler provided for every possible 
comfort of the crowd. McCarthy's subordinates were both 
considerate, courteous and respectful, and never at any time 
during the trial was there any disorder or commotion, while 
ever)rthing which could be done was done by McQuade and 
Bowler to accommodate those who came to hear the trial. On 
the other hand, the crowd was always orderly and decorous, and 
it is doubtful if at any other political trial the spectators con- 
ducted themselves with more dignity or restraint than those 
who packed the courtroom during the eight long and trying 
weeks of the trial. Not once did Judge Hand rap for order; 
not once did the situation require it. There were frequent rip- 
ples of laughter, but they were always orderly and quick to 
subside. After the jury was polled Judge Hand thanked the 



454 My Political Trial and Experiences 

jury for its conscientious consideration of the case, and assured 
them that he was convinced that they could not agree and that 
whatever convictions the jurors held were unchangeable and 
that further deliberation was vain. John J. O'Leary, counsel 
for the defense thanked the jurors on behalf of the defense 
and stated that the defense wished to concur with the state- 
ments of the Court. 

"The defendant then addressed the Court and stated that the 
conduct of the trial by Judge Hand was eminently fair and 
that he was proud to enter in the record that the Court in the 
conduct of the case upheld the best American traditions. Judge 
Hand thanked the defendant and the defendant, then, addres- 
sing the Court said: "I have been in jail nine months and now 
demand to be released on bail. I have been tried on a bail- 
able offense and held in jail on a non-bailable offense, a thing 
unprecedented in the history of American justice." But Judge 
Hand broke in and said: "Mr. O'Leary, this is Sunday. The 
Court can take no action on Sunday," to which the defendant 
replied: "Very well, I shall make application later." Judge 
Hand then left the bench and the defendant was taken to 
the Marshal's office while the crowd surged around him to 
congratulate him on the result, following him down the corri- 
dor until faced back by the Marshals, who were anxious to 
get the defendant out of the jam. 

"The defendant's family was happy over the result. The 
defendant embraced his mother and wife, shook hands with his 
father and brothers, thanked his brothers John and Arthur 
for their able assistance and devotion to his interests, and 
congratulated them upon his acquittal, and William J. Daly, his 
lawyer, upon the success of his legal endeavors for his client. 
The spectators were happy and laughed and chatted about the 
corridor and discussed the sudden and surprising result. They 
lingered about the corridors to get a chance to shake hands 
with the defendant for three hours, and when the building was 
cleared they remained outside the Post Office Building to 
get a glimpse of the defendant, who was waiting with Marshal 
McCarthy in his private office. In the meantime O'Leary and 



Conclusion of the Trial 455 

his wife and members of his family were closeted with the 
jurors, talking and laughing and discussing the case. O'Leary 
shook hands with Ernest R. Hunter, the foreman of the jury, 
who caused the disagreement, and told him that he bore him 
no malice and accorded him the right to differ with him, even 
to convict him if he chose. He assured him he was innocent. 
O'Leary shook hands with all the jurors and insisted that 
when he was liberated he wanted to meet them again as his 
guests where he could better express his appreciation of their 
devotion to America's highest ideals, and also obtain from 
them the details of their deliberations. 

"After 9 o'clock on Sunday O'Leary was taken back to the 
Tombs in Marshal McCarthy's automobile by the Marshal 
himself. In the meantime John J. O'Leary and the O'Leary 
family invited the jurors to the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, eight 
of them accepting, where until 2 A. M. the trial was rehearsed 
and the jurors deliberations discussed. The strongest men 
for the defense were George E. Hall, a salesman; William 
L. H. Gallin, a contractor from the Bronx, and James S. Kirk, 
an electrical engineer; while Bertie J. Kelsey, of Holland 
Dutch stock, Isidor Sherick, a Hebrew merchant; James W. 
Harte, a son of a Dublin father and a Wicklow mother; and 
Albert Plumacher, a German-American, and John J. Ham- 
mond, a boat owner from the Bronx, remained strong and 
steadfast throughout. 

"Ernest R. Hunter, of Scotch-English extraction, prevented 
the final unanimous acquittal. He lined up Elias J. Cabot, 
James C. Hull and Frank H. Jenke with him, but the three 
latter agreed to acquit on all counts providing Hunter could 
be swung, but Hunter remained obdurate and absolutely re- 
fused to change his vote. 

"Reports on Hunter while the jury was out showed that 
he had London and Toronto connections, and that early in 
1916 he was seen in front of the bulletin boards arguing for 
England's side of the war. He was for the prosecution from 
the start, listening intently to the prosecution's perjured evi- 
dence, but sneering and turning his back on many of the de- 



456 My Political Trial and Experiences 

fendant's witnesses. Everyone in the courtroom knew what 
Hunter would do. He was not an impartial juror, and he 
was not enough of a democrat to give weight to the great 
majority against him. Cabot and Jenke were wiUing at any 
time to switch and did so frequently. Hull was also pre- 
judiced, but not so prejudiced that he was not willing to be 
convinced he was wrong. The attitude of Hunter is curious, 
since an indicted juror was planted on John J. O'Leary's first 
jury. By occupation he is a stock broker, of a firm known as 
Hunter and Childs. Even some of the jurors themselves 
later said his attitude was strange and that they believed 
an investigation should be made, one going as far as to say, 
"Hunter was a plant." The fact that Hunter could not swing 
the jury; the fact that eight strong men were convinced and 
turned on Hunter and drove him from one count to another, 
proves what an impression the defense made and what a 
miserable spectacle the government made of itself in the name 
of the American people. 

"The outcome of the O'Leary case is a mandate to the gentle- 
men in Washington to leave the Irish race in America alone ; 
to stop persecution of Irish- Americans ; to release them from 
prison and burn up their indictments. Five of the jurors who 
stood by O'Leary were Democrats ; the four who voted against 
him on the first ballot were Republicans. This is a strange 
feature of the case. Were Republicans striving to smash the 
Democratic Party by convicting a Democrat of a political 
ofifense when the war is over? Are the Southerners of the 
District Attorney's Office of the Southern District of New 
York working for the Republican Party in New York City? 
That is what four of the five Democrats, who voted for an 
acquittal wanted to know. When the verdict was rendered 
Colonel Thomas B. Felder, counsel for O'Leary, was not in 
court. The defendant stated he had gone to Washington. 

"The summing up in the case, with the Court's charge, took 
a week. No other case has ever required so much time to 
sum up. James W. Osborne opened for the prosecution. He 
reviewed the evidence, pointing out the features of it relied 



Conclusion of the Trial 457 

upon by the Government to convict. He spoke of the Ridder 
letter and read it, sentence by sentence, analyzing it carefully 
discussing what he believed the letter meant and was intended 
to mean. Mr. Osborne was never in better form and was 
never severer in his denunciation, but he was plainly laboring 
under a serious handicap. The evidence was against him. 
He called attention repeatedly to exhibits and frequently spoke 
to the foreman and the foreman listened as though he was a 
funnel to receive all Mr. Osborne said. Mr, Osborne con- 
sumed four hours and was followed by Arthur T. O'Leary 
for the defense, 

"Arthur O'Leary talked for six hours beginning on Monday 
at 3.30 P. M., and ending Tuesday at 4.45 P. M. It is doubtful 
if a more able presentation of a case has ever been heard in 
the Federal Court. He reviewed the evidence, analyzed it 
carefully, compared the evidence of the prosecution with that 
of the defense; denounced Madame Gonzales, Aubrey Pettit 
and Charles A. Martin as perjurers; proved where they had 
committed perjury, and denounced Dr. Frederick Bischoff as 
the evil agent who framed the witnesses and instigated the 
perjury. He denounced the prosecution for failing to call 
BischofT to the stand, demanding why? He wanted to know 
why Bischoff called on Madame Victorica two and three times 
a week and spent from one to three hours on each visit with 
her. He denounced the Government for continuing Madame 
Victorica's drug supply and insisted that it was unprofessional, 
unlawful and done for the purpose of exercising control over 
her. Mr. O'Leary compared her contradictory statements on 
the Bellevue Hospital record with what she told O'Leary in 
a written statement produced in evidence, and with her testi- 
mony. He crucified her as a credible witness, and the Gaelic 
American is reliably informed that the jury threw out Madame 
Victorica's testimony. And this is the witness upon whom 
the Government has relied to hold Irish men and women in 
jail for over ten months. He paid a great tribute to the wit- 
nesses for the defense, the soldiers and the Bazaar workers, 
and wound up with an eloquent appeal which moved the 



458 My Political Trial and Experiences 

courtroom to tears. Upon concluding he was warmly con- 
gratulated by his associates and by his opponents and the 
spectators. 

"Mr. O'Leary was followed by William J. Daly, counsel for 
Adolph Stern, who was allowed one hour and thirty min- 
utes. In a quiet judicial way he presented the issues for 
decision. He quoted the law, the indictment and the evidence. 
He insisted there was no evidence against Stern, that he was 
merely a clerk or business manager, and that he had no con- 
trol over the policy or articles in "Bull." In other words that 
Stern was not really a defendant, but an exhibit in the case. 
When Daly had consumed his allotted time the Court offered 
him another half hour, but Mr. Daly declined and resumed his 
seat at the counsel table. That Daly's summation was effective 
is proved by the fact that his client was acquitted. 

"Colonel Felder next took up the summate. He consumed 
four hours on Wednesday, completing his effort by Wednes- 
day night. Colonel Felder was never more effective. His 
ridicule and satire and humorous jabs at the prosecution had 
the courtroom and even Judge Hand himself convulsed with 
laughter. He referred to James W. Osborne, Jr., as "Sec- 
undus," and to H. Snowden Marshall as "Primus." There 
they sit over there, "Primus" and "Secundus." I wonder 
when "Secundus" visited Victorica on one Sunday afternoon 
if "Primus" visited Gonzales in Manhattan Avenue?" he 
asked as the courtroom roared. Mr. Marshall was plainly 
vexed, while Mr. Osborne, who has a sense of humor, laughed 
aloud. Colonel Felder touched the high points of the case. 
He paid a glowing tribute to the Irish in America, and wound 
up with one of the most eloquent appeals ever heard in any 
court. He asked the jurors to render their verdict on their 
'consciences in the presence of a just God.' 

"Colonel Felder was followed by H. Snowden Marshall, 
who made a very effective and subtle address, extending him- 
self as never before. He played up an attack made by the 
defendant upon Cardinal Gibbons for his war utterances, en- 
tirely overlooking the fact that the defendant had praised the 



Conclusion of the Trial 459 

Pope and had compared Cardinal Gibbons's war utterances 
with Pope Benedict's peace utterances. Mr. Marshall couldn't 
understand why O'Leary had given up a $25,000 a year law 
practice to fight the British Propaganda 'unless he went from 
one lucrative occupation to another.' Yet the Government 
did not prove that O'Leary ever profited one cent by his 
work, but on the contrary the proof was overwhelming that 
he had contributed large sums of money. 

"Mr. Marshall also asserted that the American Truth 
Society began its operations in April, 1915, when everyone 
knows it was organized and inaugurated in January, 1912. 
For innuendo and suggestion utterly without any evidence 
to support them, Mr. Marshall's address sounded like an edi- 
torial in the New York Times, and members of the jury after- 
wards declared it was so full of bias and prejudice against 
the defendant that they disregarded it. They declared that 
Mr. Osborne's summing up was a greater and more convinc- 
ing effort and that they gave it more weight and consideration 
than anything Mr. Marshall said, because Mr, Osborne was 
doing his duty and stuck to the facts, while Marshall — a volun- 
teer to prosecute O'Leary — wandered from the facts into the 
field of prejudice. On one occasion he tried to influence 
Catholics in the jury box, holding up Cardinal Gibbons, and 
on another trying to influence Irishmen on the jury by fulsome 
praise of the Irish, after attacking them by evidence. 

"The jurors also said that the publication of newspaper 
articles inspired by the Government, through new indictments, 
hurt the prosecution, because every juror could see clearly 
that the prosecution was using newspapers to obtain a con- 
viction. One juror remarked how Osborne would ask a 
witness about an individual and nothing else would be said. 
And the juror would look at the paper next morning and the 
paper would tell who the individual was. The juror said, 'the 
jury was wise, but it didn't work.' Another juror said that 
every man on the jury was convinced that the defendant, 
O'Leary, was persecuted because of his telegram to the Presi- 
dent, and that 'no jury would ever convict Jeremiah O'Leary 



460 My Political Trial and Experiences 

of any political offense,' knowing that President Wilson was 
the appointing power of the Attorney General and in reality 
the controlling power of the prosecuting attorney. The gossip 
of the jurors would make very interesting reading, because 
it shows that there is a very wide gap between the wishes of 
the Southern Autocracy in the Federal Building, led by Mr. 
Caffey and ending with Mr. Marshall, and the average citizen 
of New York. This is no city for Southerners to work off 
their gratitude to England for England's help to the South 
during the Civil War or to persecute men of Irish blood be- 
cause of the fact that they are the descendants of the men who 
saved the Union, carrying their perfectly just feelings against 
England because of England's attitude towards that war. 

"Neither is it a very good locality for a Democratic President 
with British predilections to persecute an Irishman for hatred 
of British imperialism because the only effect of such perse- 
cution can be to destroy the Democratic Party in New York 
City — work the Republican Party is deeply interested in, 
as proven by the fact that the New York Sun and Tribune 
played up the O'Leary trial more than other New York papers. 
The Sun and Tribune are wiser than the Democratic leaders 
in Washington. 

"In the Tombs O'Leary received telegrams and letters from 
leaders of the Irish movement all over the country; from 
priests and laymen and from friends. All day Sunday the 
New York Evening Telegram played up the O'Leary case. 
'O'Leary jury still out,' the newsboys shouted through the 
streets, while the people snapped up copies of the paper to get 
the latest news on the case. Everywhere the case was dis- 
cussed and the one thing which was uppermost in all gossip 
was, 'persecution because of the telegram he sent to Wilson.' 
And 'Wilson's revenge' was another phrase used. And still 
another was, 'Mr. Wilson is revengeful, as proven by the 
Cohalan incident.' 'I never thought President Wilson could 
do such a thing,' was a way in which disillusioned admirers 
of the President referred to the case. 'I thought Mr. Wilson 
was a bigger man,' said other former followers of the Presi- 



Conclusion of the Trial 461 

dent. On Monday morning the New York Tribune was first 
on the streets with a great black headline screaming 'O'Leary 
acquitted of conspiracy charge.' The newspaper was snapped 
up by thousands who were on the streets after midnight. The 
case was the chief subject of gossip the next day. In the very 
first column on the front page of the World was the headline, 
'Acquit O'Leary on Four of Five Counts.' The New York 
Sun announced in the centre column of the front page, 
'O'Leary Wins Near Acquittal in Long Fight.' The only 
newspapers to announce a disagreement were the New York 
American and the Times. Just why the American should 
agree with the Times is no mystery, since the American 
is supporting the Administration and does not desire to 
destroy the Democratic Party in New York. The American 
suppressed all the revelations of the trial, just as the 
Times did. The World played up the case as an acquittal 
for another reason, that is to stop the spread of Socialism 
and Bolshevism among the Irish, because the stupid 
prosecution of O'Leary, Ryan, Robinson and the cruel 
treatment accorded Margaret Sullivan, an Irish girl without 
influence or friends, has angered the Irish in New York, while 
the failure of Hearst, Hylan, Smith, or Murphy, the respon- 
sible Democratic leaders of New York, to take any action 
or to stop the demolition of the Democratic Party here by 
Southern Democrats has sickened and disgusted the rank and 
file of the party. 

"O'Leary spent Monday and Tuesday in the Tombs, and 
according to the New York Sun of Tuesday morning must 
stay in the Tombs 'because he has been indicted on a capital 
offense,' which is unbailable, although everyone knows that 
all the evidence on the capital offence was offered against him 
in the Bull case, with the announced result. 

"O'Leary's wife was in a state of collapse as the case neared 
the end. On one occasion she was seen to stagger as she was 
leaving the courtroom and to fall against the jury rail, grip- 
ping it for support. She spent most of the three days of 
waiting while the jury was out on a couch in another court- 



462 My Political Trial and Experiences 

room, surrounded by Miss Ella Morris and Miss Catherine 
Brady, devoted friends, and Miss Anna Prendergast, of East 
Broadway, her cousin. O'Leary's two boys, Robert Emmet 
and Gerald Whalen O'Leary, were constant spectators, both 
having access to all parts of the Federal Building, running 
up and down the corridors and in and out of the Marshal's 
and District Attorney's offices, even fixing the chairs of the 
jury box. And when the jury was out they went through the 
motions of lawyers examining witnesses, making speeches and 
sitting in the witness chair where their father testified for six 
or seven days. Gertrude — O'Leary's only daughter — was sick 
during the trial, while Stephen, the youngest child, was also 
ill. O'Leary's mother bore up with great fortitude, while his 
father was entertained in Room 319 by friends who told stories 
which amused him greatly. 

"It is doubtful if any trial in the Federal Building ever 
developed or evidenced so much real sympathy on the part 
of friends. While the jury was out Surrogate John P. Co- 
halan, Mrs. Shields, wife of Judge Shields; Senator James 
Frawley, District Attorney Bohan, Dr. Jennings of Brooklyn, 
Dr. Gertrude Kelly, Mr. and Mrs. De Liser, Michael O'Reilly, 
John Gill, Judge John T. Martin, Gertrude Corliss, Mary 
Brennan, Mary S. Kelly, Margaret Burke, Mrs. Brannigan of 
McClure's Magazine, Andrew Corbett of the Board of Esti- 
mate; Lieutenants Sheehan and Kenneally of the Police De- 
partment, and several hundred others waited for the verdict. 
The attitude of Marshal McCarthy's office, the Marshal him- 
self and his Deputies, McQuade and Bowler, was considerate 
in every way. The Marshals must preserve order, clear the 
court and corridors, but in this instance, without doing any- 
thing unnecessary, or without discrimination against any other 
cases, they showed every courtesy — and why not? Practically 
every sympathizer was a Democrat, not a Socialist nor a 
Bolshevist, but a Democratic voter, incensed at persecution 
by a Democratic Administration. 

"The representatives of the press were plainly sympathetic 
with the defense. They said so in conversations. The chief 



Conclusion of the Trial 463 

topic was the failure of expected revelations, the utter break- 
down of the Government's case, the revelations proved by the 
defense of perjury, bribery and persecution, and other sensa- 
tions carefully concealed by the newspapers. O'Leary himself 
showed no concern. He gave a few exhibition jigs in Room 
319; told a few Tombs anecdotes to amuse his friends, took 
a few "constitutionals" around the corridors with the Marshals, 
and joked with Mr. Osborne and with friends. 

"Every time Mr. Osborne walked into the courtroom he was 
followed by the crowd in the hall, expecting that a verdict was 
at hand, until Mr. Osborne would laugh and say, "Nothing 
doing yet." Th3 crowd was always good-natured, and when 
the verdict was finally announced it was plainly jubilant, al- 
though extremely puzzled why O'Leary should be taken back 
to jail. A man from out of town, speaking of the rural press, 
said: "When the case started the papers were full of it, but 
all of a sudden we didn't get any more news. Something 
must have happened at the trial and then — silence. I had to 
hunt up copies of The Gaelic American to find out why." 
H. Snowden Marshall, referred to by Arthur O'Leary as "the 
man who volunteered to widow a wife and orphan four small 
children," did not appear after the Judge's charge. There 
was not one person in court interested in the prosecution save 
the "Southern Autocracy," while the people whom the prose- 
cution was supposed to represent were represented by numerous 
spectators everyone of whom said: "The prosecution of 
O'Leary is an outrage, a blot on American justice." 

One of the jurors said: "I suppose Mr. Wilson is waiting 
on the other end of the wire in Paris to hear the news. We had 
that in mind, too, particularly when one of the jurors seemed 
so anxious to convict." 

"During the trial a Republican Congressman was an in- 
terested spectator, watching the case from its political angle. 
In conversation he spoke of an investigation of the Secret Ser- 
vice Fund of $80,000,000 spent under the direct auspices of the 
President. This is the fund responsible for the perjury of 
Madame Gonzales, Aubrey Pettit and Witness Martin, the 



464 My Political Trial and Experiences 

"hull inspector." This is the fund referred to in the testimony 
of Mrs. Durand, when a representative of the Government told 
her that the Secret Service was the only Department of the 
Government which did not have to account for its expenditures 
and that "it was very liberal with the money with those who 
helped the Government." The Republican leaders are fencing 
for a wedge into the Democratic vote and nothing would please 
or suit them better than an investigation into persecution of 
the Irish Race in America, since the "Irish vote," so-called, is 
the backbone of the Democratic Party in the North and East. 

"The bright spot of the trial was its conduct by Judge 
Augustus N. Hand. Hard pressed by both sides, he was fre- 
quently in dilemmas unusual in the trial of cases because of the 
very political character of the case. A man of instinctive im- 
partiality, a born jurist from an old American Revolutionary 
juristic family, he ruled with the justice of his nature and his 
decisions were consistent with and symbolic of the finest Amer- 
ican traditions. The spectators who attended the trial will 
never forget his attitude throughout. Several times the defend- 
ant personally protested against his rulings, but he adhered to 
them, only in a few instances changing his rulings, whenever 
argument and reason justified such a change. What a contrast 
between Judge Hand and Norbury and Keogh of British Irish 
fame? What a fine tradition he has created for American jus- 
tice ! What respect for the American bench ! On every lip was 
the comment : "Judge Hand was fair." And when at the con- 
clusion of the trial the defendant paid him a deserved tribute, 
a murmur of approval was heard throughout the courtroom. 
The Judge blushed deeply, bowed his head and replied: "I 
am always glad to hear approval of my fairness from any man." 

"Judge Hand and the name of Hand will be long remem- 
bered by the Irish in America. In a crisis he protected the fair 
name of American justice. Where could the Irish turn if the 
very temple of justice should be used for persecution and 
perjury? Judge Hand is an independent Democrat but on the 
bench he proved himself an American of the highest type. 
He never interfered in the trial and listened to arguments 



Conclusion of the Trial 465 

with patience and respect. His charge was eminently fair. In 
it he never showed by motion, gesture, or facial expression, 
what his own personal opinions were. The only time he moved 
his hand was when he admonished the jury to consider the 
evidence "carefully," and well the jury heeded his warning. 
The jurors in their comments afterwards praised Judge Hand 
warmly and said, "Not one juror got any idea of where he 
stood or what his opinions were, and that was important to us 
because we were watching him, and if he had shown any bias 
against the defendant it would have helped O'Leary, because 
of what O'Leary had said about Judge Mayer's remarks when 
the case was called before him in March, 1918. Mr. Osborne's 
attitude was that of a prosecutor throughout. He did his 
duty. Arthur O'Leary, in his summing up, said : "I honor Mr. 
Osborne. He is paid to prosecute and he has done his public 
duty well, but Mr. Marshall I cannot praise, because he has 
volunteered in the interest of prejudice to widow a wife and 
orphan four little children." 

"Thus closes the first chapter of the O'Leary case — the first 
Irishman in America to be persecuted because he loved Ireland 
and her freedom and condemned England for her persecution of 
Ireland. The British Propaganda failed dismally, as is evi- 
dent from a filthy editorial which was published in the 
Brooklyn Standard-Union, headed, "Will England Be Truly 
Grateful?" and ending with the words, "The disagreement of 
the jury is not exactly or in terms a vote of thanks for helping 
the Allied cause." The Brooklyn Standard-Union has been 
contemptible in its recent upholding of England. It seems to 
have turned from an American organ since Mr. Berri's death. 
It was American then. Has England taken over the Standard- 
Union from the Berri estate? Is English money waiting for 
the deaths of good American newspaper owners to grab up 
good American newspapers ? It seems strange how American 
newspapers turn British when the owners die. That's just 
what happened to the Washington Post. 

"From the Tombs O'Leary issued a statement on Tuesday 
in which he said: 



466 My Political Trial and Experiences 

" 'The verdict vindicates not only my Americanism but also 
the Americanism of American courts of justice. It answers for 
all time the libel and lie that my motives were material. The 
persecution of the Administration has left me a poor man, 
crucified my family, broken up my happy home, and spread 
my wife and children among relatives and friends, but it has 
never broken my spirit. I love America more than ever before, 
and as for the Irish Cause in America, I believe my imprison- 
ment has aided it everywhere, just as the imprisonment of 
De Valera and the Sinn Feiners has aided it in Ireland, 

"I have no bitterness against the prosecution or my 
prosecutors. I have suffered much, but so have others. I am 
only an incident in a great cause which through weal or woe 
shall never die. I thank all my friends. I am proud of their 
devoted support. The crowded courtroom all during my trial, 
the crowded corridors, the warm expressions of support I re- 
ceived by letters and telegrams since the verdict, are the best 
evidences of what kind of hearts the Irish have when the dark 
clouds of persecution overshadow human life. I would dearly 
love to have the accounts of the trial published in The Gaelic 
American printed in pamphlet form and made available for sale 
throughout the country, because I know thousands of the race 
and others want them and would buy them at any price. The 
record of the trial should also be secured. I cannot buy it. It 
would cost at least $8,000. The Irish Race in America should 
preserve it. It is a record of revelations of convincing proof 
that the man of Irish blood who dares to stand up and fight 
Britain where Britain is sensitive, is not safe in this free 
country, where once the crack of the British rifle and the 
boom of the British cannon on our soil made the presence, the 
lives and liberties of the American freeman unsafe. I want to 
say a word to the Irish in America. Now is the moment for 
action. Never before have Ireland's opportunities shone so 
brightly. No matter what England does, no matter how she 
struggles here, how she lies and libels, England cannot crush 
the eternal truths the recent war has illustrated. And never 
can she convince the American people that the recent war was 



Conclusion of the Trial 467 

not one to crush one side and intrench or perpetuate the mani- 
fest infamies of the other. 

''Ireland must be free. The Irish people have voted it. The 
Irish in America, if they do their full duty, can compel it. 
Britain is mighty yet, but mightier than England is the inexor- 
able cry of "Self-Determination," of "the rights of Small Na- 
tions," her own shibboleths, with which she induced her bravest 
and best to fight and die upon every battlefield of the recent 
war. While her own slogans are lingering in her people's 
breasts, while the dirt is still fresh on her sons' graves, while 
her oppressed working classes are now clamoring for liberty, 
the Irish in America, side by side with Americans of other 
blood, honest Americans who don't believe in humbug, must 
go forward for Irish liberty, in vindication of the assertions of 
Mr. Wilson. 

"America is too noble to be stultified by sham and hypocrisy. 
American blood is too precious to be spilled in defiance of 
Washington's warnings, for liberty for certain selected nations. 
The American Declaration of Independence is too much alive 
in our souls to witness Poland free, but Ireland a slave. Before 
America gets back to money-making, while her soul is stirred 
by the valor of her sons, while the people assemble everywhere 
to acclaim the return of her noble heroes, while the soldier still 
moves with the spirit of America's generous devotion to human 
liberty, the Cause of Ireland, always dear to American hearts, 
must become the cause of America. Until the superciHous Eng- 
lishman who receives the resolution of the House of Repre- 
sentatives with anger and contempt opens his eyes upon a newer 
world, purged of tyranny by the determination of the people 
of the world to be through with war by destroying the cupidity 
and avarice, the causes of war, the fight for Ireland's freedom 
must continue. Let the Irish in America visualize the glory of 
Ireland's Emancipation. Let them behold themselves and their 
children freed from the stigma of slavery, which in America 
has held them back, let them contemplate upon the plane to 
which they shall be elevated amongst Americans when Ireland 
becomes a Republic. Let the Irish- American financier and 



468 My Political Trial and Experiences 

business man appreciate how much more profits he will make 
as American ships move in and out of Irish harbors, loaded 
with American products for the Irish people and Irish products 
for the American people and the Irish Cause will become an 
avalanche which a smouldering England cannot resist. 

"The question is : 'Are we Republicans, or Democrats, or job- 
holders, or money workers, or are we what our soldiers were — 
men who can march into the jaws of death with a holy resolve 
to win for our country, the United States, the glories it won 
when at Yorktown Cornwallis sent his sword by another to the 
man who in darkness and despair could not be swerved from 
the paths of liberty and justice. These are my thoughts to-day 
as I ponder upon the opportunities of the future. I have 
learned what can be gained by fighting, no matter what the 
cost. I don't want any man or woman to tell me how sorry 
they are because I am harbored with burglars and murderers. 
I want them to stand up in their glory ; in their strength ; on the 
things which have made the Irish race respected everywhere ; 
which have made it of value to America, of value to England, 
of value to the world, and on this vantage ground to stand or 
fall. If the Irish in America resolve to do this only God him- 
self can tell them if they shall succeed. With faith in God, 
with faith in the inevitable triumph of truth and justice, with 
scorn for the devil and his Imperial Associates, we can be con- 
scious of only one outcome." 



XXII 
FREE AT LAST. 

On Thursday morning, March 29th, I was released from the 
Tombs in $10,000 bail, furnished by Mrs. Michael F. O'Rourke, 
wife of my warm and devoted friend. Major M. F. O'Rourke, 
of Brooklyn, and by Mrs. John R. Jones, wife of my legal 
associate for several years. By twelve o'clock, with my wife, 
my brother, John, Mr. and Mrs. O'Rourke and Mr. and Mrs. 
Jones, I left the Federal Building a free man, went to my law 
office for a few minutes and then dined with Surrogate John 
P. Cohalan and my wife, and brothers, John and Arthur, I 
then went to Freeport, Long Island, to look over a new home — 
a little cottage — where ever so humble I can be happy with my 
wife and children. We agreed on a place, after which I re- 
turned to my father's home, where I met my father, mother, 
brothers and sisters. My little daughter, Gertrude, was wait- 
ing for me in an arm chair, waiting for her "Daddy," now 
almost a year, and her *'Daddy," worn and haggard, hugged 
her until his strength was almost gone. On Friday I left for 
Philadelphia, where I spent three weeks resting at the home 
of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph G. McGarrity, on Springfield Avenue, 
after which I went to Atlantic City, returning to New York on 
April 25th. Being without a home still — my father's home 
being crowded — I secured quarters with my cousin, John 
Downey, proprietor of the Alcazar Hotel, at 43 West 32nd 
Street, where in seclusion I began the work of compiling and 
writing this book. Meantime, my wife secured a little cottage 
at Freeport, Long Island, small but homelike, and while I 
worked on my book she also worked hard, making the home 
smile for the day when we shall have happiness and peace. 

In the meantime — and before this book went to press — 
Willard J. Robinson and Paul Fricke had been tried and ac- 
quitted, all of which received scant notice in the press, but 

469 



470 My Political Trial and Experiences 

this book shall send the tidings to all corners of the world. Since 
my return to New York from Philadelphia, I have made 
several public appearances, and upon each occasion was warmly 
and cordially received. Although the people were un- 
acquainted with the revelations herein written, they appeared 
to have sensed them intuitively. Apparently they are con- 
scious of the fact that an American of Irish blood loves Amer- 
ica too much to be disloyal to her principles. The American 
people, by the action of the jury in my case, have made it clear 
to the world that during the recent war an American owed 
no allegiance to any foreign government, and that it is yet as it 
was in 1776, the proud privilege of the American citizen to look 
askance upon imperialism and tyranny, whether it is prac- 
ticed by friend or by foe. 

Of the newspaper editorials commenting upon my vindica- 
tion, I quote my favorite, that written by Dr. Patrick McCarten, 
Envoy of Ireland to America, also Editor of the "Irish Press," 
of Philadelphia, a newspaper owned by that sterling American, 
Joseph G. McGarrity. Under the caption, "O'Leary's Ac- 
quittal," the "Press" said in its issue of March 29: 

"Fifty-four years ago, John O'Leary, who lived and died a 
staunch Fenian, wrote in the columns of the Irish People, the 
official organ of the Fenian Brotherhood: 'Not by men who 
love ease, money, health or even reputation more than country 
can it be hoped that freedom will be won. Pain, poverty, dis- 
ease and obloquy have ever been the fate of some of the noblest 
and purest spirits that have appeared on this earth, and any and 
all of these must we face if we mean that Ireland should be 
free.* Jeremiah O'Leary, a worthy scion of the same noble 
clan, had sacrificed ease, money, health and even reputation in 
an effort to help Ireland to freedom. He was born in this 
country and nurtured from childhood on the lofty ideals upon 
which the great Republic was founded. Because he was true 
to these ideals at all times and under all circumstances he had 
to pay the price. Had he been a votary of expediency, he 
would, like so many others, have taken the rosy path to fame 
and personal aggrandizement. Not a single one of the enemies 



Free at Last 471 

Mr. O'Leary made but in their hearts had to admire his 
ability and acknowledge that he could if he wished have lived 
in ease and amassed wealth in his profession. He, however, 
realized the truths which his namesake, John O'Leary, ex- 
pounded half a century previously and for the freedom of 
the land he never saw and the glory of his native country, he 
turned his back on the flesh-pots and trod the thorny path made 
sacred by the blood of the martyrs of his race. Every man who 
attempts any noble act which is not commonplace must run 
the risk of being misunderstood, and Jeremiah O'Leary was 
misunderstood by even some of the men and women whose 
lives were devoted to the same ideals for which he readily made 
such a sacrifice. The persecution which he has suffered and 
the final triumph vindicates his character, not only to his 
friends but even to his foes. 

" 'Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice sake.' 
Jeremiah O'Leary has suffered persecution for the sake of 
justice to Ireland, and it is safe to assume that he is happier 
today than if he had turned away from the sight of wrong 
and injustice and devoted his talents to the pursuit of wealth 
and happiness. Were Jeremiah O'Leary born in Ireland and 
a citizen of the Republic of Ireland his actions would have been 
easily understood by friend and foe. His birth and citizenship 
in this country made his task the more difficult, as he was held 
up to public odium as a traitor to his native country. What he 
did or attempted to do he did for Ireland. He had nothing to 
gain personally, but on the contrary everything to lose. Men 
and newspapers may revile the patriots who went to prison in 
Ireland, but the public realize that all their acts were inspired 
by patriotism. To the average man the position of Jeremiah 
O'Leary was not so clear. Yet he suffered for Ireland in ex- 
actly the same sense as Professor De Valera or any other Irish 
patriot. The only difference was that his activities were con- 
fined to American soil, but the aim was identical with that of 
the patriots in Ireland. If he was inspired by any other 
motive it was that the land of his birth should be true to the 
ideals upon which it was founded, and that if it could not claim 



472 My Political Trial and Experiences 

the glory of aiding Ireland in her noble struggle that the 
world would not charge the United States with hostility to the 
freedom of Ireland. We heartily congratulate Mr. O'Leary 
on his victory in court and salute the nobility of character 
which brought him thither." 



XXIII 
ENORMOUS PUBLIC RECEPTION. 

On May 25th a great public reception was given me at the 
Lexington Theatre in New York. A morning paper, known 
as "the mouthpiece of President Wilson," describes it as 
follows : — 

"Audience Hails O'Leary As Hero. 

"Again and Again Rises and Shouts and Cheers 'Martyr' 
as He Bows and Smiles in Lexington Theatre. 

"Hisses and Catcalls Greet Wilson's Name. 

"Cabinet Members Denounced by a Speaker as Product of 
'the Rebel Confederacy.' 

"Jeremiah A. O'Leary sat for three hours on the stage of 
the Lexington Theatre last night hearing himself praised as a 
"hero" and a "martyr," smiling and bowing appreciatively to 
fully 3,500 men and women of Irish birth or extraction, who 
acclaimed him a "loyal American." O'Leary having been 
acquitted of conspiracy to obstruct the Draft Law, his admirers 
tendered the public reception to him in appreciation of his 
having 'sacrificed much for a noble cause.' The 'cause,' of 
course, was freedom for Ireland. 

"Described as a 'brave friend who was bitterly persecuted,' 
O'Leary modestly bowed his head when John D. Moore, former 
State Conservation Commissioner and enthusiastic propa- 
gandist for Irish independence, opened the meeting with a 
glowing tribute to him. 

"Moore stirred the audience to cheers when he declared that 
'floods of caliminy had been poured on Jerry' by what he 
characterized as the 'pro-British press.' When Moore referred 
to O'Leary as a man 'passionately American,' who 'loved 
America and Ireland too,' the audience arose and shouted. The 
green, yellow and white flag of the Irish republic was waved 
in all parts of the theatre. 

473 



474 My Political Trial and Experiences 

"O'Leary's eyes were trained a greater part of the time on 
a box in the lower tier where sat his wife and four children — 
three manly looking little boys and one pretty girl, all of whom 
waved frantically the flag of the Irish Republic and applauded 
and shouted as enthusiastically as others in the audience. The 
men and women in the orchestra and galleries were on their 
feet again when O'Leary was characterized as a 'grave danger 
to the English machine which had to be silenced during the 
war.' 

"Hisses and catcalls greeted the occasional mention of Presi- 
dent Wilson's name and the names of his Cabinet members. 
Four were described by Chairman Moore as having been 'born 
under the Stars and Stripes.' The rest were stigmatized as 
products of 'the Rebel Confederacy.' Mention of Lloyd George 
and other Englishmen provoked groans from the audience. 

" 'Thank God, it was the truth that set Jeremiah O'Leary 
free!" exclaimed Mr. Moore. Again the flags of the Irish 
Republic were flaunted and again O'Leary was obliged to 
acknowledge the shouted tribute. S. W. Johnson's reading 
of an editorial from an Irish publication characterizing 
O'Leary's trial as a 'frame-up by British agents' started an- 
other demonstration for O'Leary. When Sergt. Thomas 
O'Kelly, late of the 165th, sang the 'Wearin' of the Green' 
there was no outburst until he intoned the words, 'England's 
Bloody Red.' The hissing that followed lasted nearly a minute. 

"Gertrude B. Kelly, President of the Irish Women's Council, 
said she was grateful for the opportunity afforded to 'touch 
the hands that smell of the iron bars of the Tombs' — meaning, 
of course, O'Leary's hands. Peter Golden of the Irish Pro- 
gressive League declared that the 'felon's cap' was the 'noblest 
crown an Irishman could wear' in behalf of independence for 
his or his father's native land. Golden's insistence that Presi- 
dent Wilson should quit 'skylarking about Europe' was greeted 
with laughter and yells of approval. Golden provoked more 



Enormous Public Reception 475 

applause when he called the League of Nations the 'Intrigue of 
Nations' because it does not recognize Irish Independence. 

" 'If that League of Nations doesn't recognize the inde- 
pendence of Ireland we are going to spit on it,' declared Golden. 

"There were half a dozen other speakers, but the main event 
of the night was O'Leary's address. In this he paid tribute 
to the jurors who acquitted him, saying their verdict was a 
testimonial to the 'incorruptibility' of the American jury sys- 
tem. O'Leary said he 'gloried' in the sacrifice he made for 
Ireland, said the 'sound principles of Americanism' would 
triumph over Bolshevism, and added that, in the opinion of 
some people, his 'persecution' was inspired by the telegram he 
sent President Wilson during the campaign three years ago. 

"O'Leary referred tO' the Wilson administration as the 
'Southern autocracy in Washington' which made a 'mockery 
of the ideals' for which Americans of Irish extraction laid down 
their lives during the war. O'Leary declared in so many words 
that although it was the weight of American lives and money 
that won the war the British were claiming all the credit." 

There are many details of the reception which the journal 
in question failed to mention, notably the demonstration that 
greeted the name of Willard J. Robinson, whose trial for 
treason was just then nearing completion. Robinson was ac- 
quitted the following day. May 26th, upon the direction of 
Judge Learned Hand, before whom he was tried. He was 
not even called upon to present his defense, so weak and flimsy 
was the Government's case against him. 

Eloquent addresses were made by John D. Moore, the Chair- 
man ; Hon. Liam Mellowes, member of the Dail Eireann from 
Galway and Westmeath; Rev. John H. Dooley, pastor of 
Corpus Christi Church, and Right Rev. James W. Power, 
pastor of All Saints, New York, and the following letter from 
Dr. Patrick McCarten,* was read: 



* Envoy of the Irish Republic. 



476 My Political Trial and Experiences . H 

THE IRISH PRESS 
1213-15 Filbert Street 

Philadelphia, May 24, 1919. 
Dear Dr. Kelly : 

I am very sorry I cannot be present at the reception to 
Jeremiah A: O'Leary to-morrow night. As I told you on the 
telephone I had promised to speak at four meetings here to- 
morrow, and have been unable to make other arrangements, as 
all other speakers who might have been available here have 
engagements elsewhere. I was particularly anxious to be 
present, as the people of Ireland are convinced that whatever 
Mr. O'Leary did or contemplated doing was for the interest 
of Ireland and the honor of the United States. 

Every man who attempts any noble act which is not com- 
monplace must run the risk of being misunderstood, and Jere- 
miah O'Leary was misunderstood by many Americans. Were 
he born in Ireland and a citizen of the Republic of Ireland 
his actions would have been easily understood by friend and 
foe. Men and newspapers may revile the patriots who went to 
prison in Ireland but the public realize that all their acts are 
inspired by patriotism. To the average man the position 
of Jeremiah O'Leary was not so clear. Yet he suffered for 
Ireland in exactly the same sense as Professor De Valera or 
any other Irish patriot. The only difference was that his ac- 
tivities were confined to American soil, but the aim was iden- 
tical with that of the patriots in Ireland. If he was inspired by 
any other motive it was that the republic of his birth should be 
true to the ideals upon which it was founded and that if it 
could not claim the glory of aiding Ireland in her noble strug- 
gle that the world would not charge the United States with 
hostility to the freedom of Ireland. 

The war declarations of President Wilson led us in Ireland 
to believe that the aims of the United States and Ireland were 
identical. That is, that the ideals for which American boys 
freely gave up their lives were the ideals to which Ireland has 
ever been true. The practical application of those ideals would 
now mean the recognition of the Republic of Ireland by the 



Enormous Public Reception 477 

Government of the United States. The presence of those of us 
who directly represent the people of Ireland would tend to 
make it plain that we in Ireland understood Mr. O'Leary's 
motives and believed in his integrity and devotion to his native 
country, I am very sorry, therefore, that I cannot be with you 
at the meeting, but wish it every success. 

Sincerely yours, 

Patrick McCarten. 
The Reception Program follows : 

STAR SPANGLED BANNER Audience 

CHAIRMAN'S ADDRESS Hon. John D. Moore 

READING FROM "NATIONALITY" .. Mr. S. W. Johnson 

ADDRESS Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly 

Irish Woman's Council. 

ADDRESS Mr. Peter Golden 

Irish Progressive League. 

ADDRESS Liam Mellowes 

Member of Dail Eireann 

ADDRESS Mr. John Gill 

ADDRESS Rev. John H. Dooley 

Holland Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 

SONG— "O'Donnell Abu" George Potter 

ADDRESS . . . , Mr. Alfred R. McCann 

ADDRESS Mgr. Jas. W. Power 

ADDRESS Major M. A. Kelly 

165th U. S. Infantry. 

ADDRESS Jeremiah A. O'Leary 

SOLDIERS' SONG Audience 

Songs — Compliments Irish Musical and Dramatic Cluh. 
The boxholders included : 

Carmelite Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 

Citizens of the Irish Republic. 

Columcille Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 

Commodore Barry Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 

Cork Men's Association. 

Cornelius Colbert Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 



478 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Emerald Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Green Isle Club. 
Harlem Gaelic Society. 
Innisfail Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Irish Woman's Council. 
Irish Progressive League. 

John P. Holland Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Mayo Men's Association. 
Padraig Pearse Branch, Gaelic League. 
Sarsfield Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Sean McDermott Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Thomas McDonagh Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Thomas Ashe Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Waterford Men's Association. 
Offaly Society. 
Individuals : 
Miss Bowles. 
Miss Moire FitzGerald. 
Miss Gartland. 
Mr. J. Grady. 
Mrs. W. Edwards. 
Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly. 
Mrs. Leahy and Family. 
Mr. J. H. Maguire and brother. 
Mr. Bernard Murphy. 
Mr. George O'Neill. 
Mrs. and the Misses Schulte. 
Mr. John Gill and family. 
Miss Mary Skelly and sister. 
Mrs. G. L. Warner. 
Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Kenneally. 
Mrs. Jeremiah A. O'Leary and family. 
Mr. Daniel O'Leary and family. 
Mrs. Anastasia Livingstone and family. 
Miss Ella Morris and family. 
Mr. George E, Hall and jurors. 
Mrs. John D. Moore. 



Enormous Public Reception 479 

Major and Mrs. Michael F. O'Rourke. 

Dr. Frank D. Jennings and family. 

Miss Anna Prendergast. 

Mr. and Mrs. Alfred L. McCann. 

Mr. and Mrs. Vincent O. DeLiser. 
The Reception Committee comprised : Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly, 
Chairman; Maj. M. F. O'Rourke, Treasurer; Miss Mary 
Brennan, Secretary; Mrs. J. C. Hickey, Miss Mary Skelly, 
Mr. Thomas F. Ryan, Miss B. Skelly, Rev. John H. Dooley, 
Mrs. Michael F. O'Rourke, Mrs. Joseph Grady, Mr. J. H 
Maguire, Mr Chas. Mullery, The Misses Gribbon, Mr. Farrell 
O'Gallagher, Mr. Shanley, Mr. Stephen Johnson, Mr. Martin 
O'Toole, Miss Margaret Brennan, Mr. Zeigler, Mr. and Mrs. 
V. O. DeLiser, Mr. Hennessy, The Misses Kelley, Mrs. Moran, 
The Misses Moran, Miss Helen Kelly, Miss May Sullivan, 
Mrs. Leahy, Miss Margaret Leahy, Miss Kitty Leahy, Mrs. 
Warner, Miss Mary McVeigh, Mr. Fred Kenny, Mr. Leo 
Fearon, Mr. W. McLoughlin, Mr. C. Hicks, Mr. J. O'Hehir, 
Mr. Jack Ryan, Mrs. Burke, Mr. V. Conlon, Mr. F. Gallagher, 
Mr. Geo. O'Neill, Mr. L. Dillon, Mr. P. J. Reilly, Miss Mor- 
rison, Miss M. Donahue, Mr. G. H. McKenna, Mrs. M. Rice, 
Mr. M. A. Hastings, Mr. C. Meany, Mr. J. Murphy, Mr. P. 
Kenneally, Miss Sullivan, Mr. P. McGowan, Mr. M. Cunning- 
ham, Mr. Regan, Mr. T. J. Cronin, Mr. Joseph Grady, Mr. 
R. E. Maguire, Mrs. and the Misses Moran. 

Perhaps the most important item on the program was the 
reading of the article published in "Nationality," by Stephen 
W. Johnson, regarding the importance of my case to Ireland 
and America. This article made a profound impression on 
the audience. "Nationality" is one of the official organs of 
the Irish Republic. It is edited by Arthur Griffith, the father 
of Sinn Fein. Its utterance is the voice of Ireland. Speaking 
of my acquittal, it said in its April number. 

"Reports have come to hand of the sensational O'Leary case 
in New York. It is apparent from the amazing disclosures 
of perjury that this was a political "frame up" instigated 
by American hirelings of the British Government. 



480 My Political Trial and Experiences 

"Compared with some of the witnesses the notorious Pigott 
might almost be considered a child in the art of invention. 
The star witness was an alleged German spy, who was known 
as the Mystery Lady, "Madame Victorica." According to 
the American press notices of the trial, startling disclosures 
were expected from this personage, and it is stated that it 
was upon information supplied by her that President De 
Valera, Arthur Griffith and their companions were arrested 
last May. It will he recollected that Lloyd George stated at 
the time that he had evidence of the "German Plot," received 
from a friendly foreign government, but that no taunts would 
drag the source from. him. It now appears that the evidence 
to be given by Victorica was expected to implicate the Sinn 
Fein leaders, but nO' such evidence was forthcoming to con- 
nect them or anybody else with the celebrated "Plot." 

"On cross-examination she confessed herself a liar. * * * 
This creature, brought up to swear away the lives of Irish- 
Americans, confessed to being a confirmed drug drunkard 
for twenty years, and admitted that she was then getting 
morphine administered to her by the United States Govern- 
ment officials. 

"Such was the creature whose evidence was to establish 
the "German Plot," implicating Irishmen in America and 
in Ireland in the, hallucinations of her drugged brain. The 
case opened on February 1st, and the collapse of this witness, 
as well as others, led to the release of the Irish prisoners in 
England, as even the English Government could not use the 
infamous, tainted testimony of the degraded wretches, Vic- 
torica and Gonzales. The latter was produced to implicate 
our friends in acts of disloyalty to their country, but even the 
pornographic press of New York could not print her personal 
record as attested in court. 

"The O'Leary case was, like the Pigott case, a monstrous 
attempt to poison the minds of foreign peoples against Ire- 
land's claim to independence. It possessed features of extraor- 
dinary degradation, unparalleled in the history even of 




Eamonn De Valera, Arrested and Imprisoned in England Upon 

the Fake German-Irish Plot. Never Charged with any 

Offense. Escaped from Prison, Selected President 

of the Provisional Irish Republic. Later 

Came to America. 



Enormous Public Reception 481 

English criminal political intrigues. It is not surprising that 
we hear no more of the German Plot. 

"A poor Irish maid, named Margaret Sullivan — a servant 
of Victorica — has been kept in prison without trial apparently 
because she would not swear like her mistress. With the 
fidelity of her race, she refused to become a perjured instru- 
ment for the degradation of her people. She deserves to be 
remembered as a heroine in her constancy, like Anne Devlin." 



XIV 

MORE PERSECUTION. 

On May 26th the Wilson Administration continued its policy 
of persecution by entering a judgment of $2,700 against me 
upon my bail forfeiture when I went West. On this judgment 
the Marshal has made a demand for payment. This was done 
in the face of my vindication. There is no precedent 
in the history of American courts for such a spiteful, oppressive 
act. When the Alien and Sedition Laws resulted in sending 
Matthew Lyon of Vermont to prison in 1797 for sedition, 
Congress later voted a vindication of Lyon and restored to him 
his legal expenses. The Democratic party was created out of 
popular opposition to the Alien and Sedition Laws, because 
these violated the inherent right of the American citizen to 
free speech and free press. The Federal Party was wiped out 
of American politics forever, because it fostered those oppres- 
sive and un-American laws. It must be remembered that Lyon 
was convicted, fined and actually sentenced to prison. In my 
case, I was absolutely vindicated upon seven out of eight 
charges in the indictment, and the jury disagreed eight to four 
in my favor on the last charge. In other words, I was not con- 
victed as Lyon was; yet in the face of my vindication, the 
Democratic party, contrary to its traditions in the Lyon case, 
by its duly authorized representatives in the office of the 
Attorney General, the Department of Justice in New York, 
actually entered a judgment against myself and wife for my 
bail bond and propose to take the little home which shelters 
my loved ones away from me. How this will result remains to 
be seen, as this book, long and exhaustive, but interesting and 
enlightening I hope to my fellow-man, goes to press. 

482 



APPENDIX 

INCLUDING INDICTMENTS AND OTHER DOCUMENTS 
OF INTEREST 



THE RIDDER LETTER * 

I take pleasure in presenting to my readers the subjoined 
document which received much attention in the course of my 
trial, though it was disregarded by the jury, contrary to the 
expectations of the prosecution and the British-controlled press. 

New York, August 9th, 1917. 
Mr. Bernard H. Ridder, 
President Staats Zeitung, 
Spruce and William Sts., City. 
My dear Ben: — 

Your resignation as trustee of the American Truth Society 
has been received. I am afraid you have taken the wrong 
course — a course that will not be approved by your own people. 
I am sorry that "Bull" was compelled to take note of some 
things you have done. The Thompson apology was terrible, 
but your action in telling Francis and La Guardia to vote 
for war was unwarranted. You should have consulted with 
me about that. My work for both of them entitled me to that 
at least. However you feel about what has been said, there is 
only one way you can find justification and that is in that ac- 
cursed "expediency" and "policy" that makes cowards of us all. 
Whatever may be said of the matter at least this much must 
be admitted: I stand where I have always stood — loyal to 
principles even in the face of war. That is my American 
heritage, my American right. You who opposed sending am- 
munition to kill your own flesh and blood certainly cannot 
now approve of sending men of German blood to finish the 
work — do you? Of course, you don't, but dare you say so? 
Was it right to stab the Mayor of Chicago in the back to sat- 
isfy the base cravings of the Mayor of New York ? Shame on 
the German- American who attacks (by inference) an American 
of Scotch-Irish stock for his brave red-blooded Americanism. 
I resent that. The German-American who would do such a 
thing deserves censure. 

Ben, you will regret this. You are wrong. You are oppos- 

* I also present through the Appendix the indictments actually filed against 
me — horrible monstrosities of exaggeration and persecution. 

485 



486 My Political Trial and Experiences 

ing your own best interests. Your strength lies in consistency. 
Your best Americanism is the inahenable rights you have cast 
from you and your paper with both hands. Don't worry about 
the Government suppressing your paper. It would not dare. 
It couldn't if it would. They who say "it can" ; "it will" are 
alarmists. But if you admit weakness, if you hesitate, if you 
surrender, why then, of course, you invite suppression. The 
most valuable part of your paper is its free speech. Surrender 
that and your paper is gone. You may do it for the sake of 
your paper but can't you see that your own readers will sup- 
press your paper more effectively than ever the Government 
could do? What your paper needs is suppression by the 
Government. As a result of an attack on "Bull" last month, 
we sold out our issue, had to make an additional run, and now 
we have been compelled to add 5,000 more copies for the 
month. "Bull" is now going over, because we are showing the 
spark you have destroyed. Come out and fight, man. Don't 
quit. The German Herold is fighting cleverly. It is getting 
your readers. Everywhere I have heard complaints. "The 
Staats — ah — it is terrible — it is terrible." This is what they are 
saying, "The German Herold — ah it is fine^ — brave." Now, 
you don't want this. These things should not be said. 

We are leading the way for you. The "Masses" is making 
your fight. See what Judge Hand said. That view will be sus- 
tained. Remember what Brutus said to Cassius, — "a friendly 
eye would never see such faults." That's what you have said 
to me. Cassius answered, "yes, a flatterer's would not though 
they be huge as high Olympus." From all over the country we 
have received approval of the attack on Metz. We have re- 
ceived subscriptions and donations in goodly amounts. I am 
sorry you have placed yourself in this position. I am sorry for 
your paper. It will all react after the war. It is not too late 
to change and I pray Heaven you will do so. I don't care about 
your resignation, you had to do that. But I do care about 
your own interests. Ben, those fellows you are catering to, 
hate you and hate your people and believe me, you will never 
get anything from them but the displeasure of your own people. 



The Ridder Letter 487 

Take heart ! Fight ! There are greater things now than news- 
papers. Fight for them and your newspaper will live again 
greater, stronger than ever before. You never made any mis- 
takes in following my advice. I know you always had the idea 
I was radical, you told folks that, but Ben, I know how it's 
going to come out and I tell you as a friend, you are going 
to lose. There is going to be a terrible awakening from all 
this business and those who surrendered are going to suffer. 

In my coming article I have taken another smash. I had 
to do it. I simply had to say it. I handed it to Francis and 
La Guardia and I handed it to you for telling them to vote 
for war. What a terrible, what a wrong thing that was to do ! 
How you failed to look ahead to consider the future, to see 
the day when the men who cast that vote would be cursed in 
heaven and on earth, before God and man. 

I am sorry, Ben, but even if you are angry you must remem- 
ber that I have placed the cause above every personal con- 
sideration; that therefore, it has been for the sake of the 
cause for which I am willing to surrender all — even friends, 
who should be the last to go — particularly when they are men 
of German blood. Give me the justification at any time and 
I will be ready to testify with praise. In the meantime I am 
going to keep up the policy of attacking German-Americans 
when they need it. They are their own worst enemies. 
Strange to say they approve my course. I have the proofs 
from all over the country. "Bull" never woke up until it 
struck out. As a newspaper man, doesn't this mean anything 
to you? Those who laughed at "Bull" at first are now prais- 
ing it. Gradually they are learning its real purpose and power 
of its attack. Hearst has bought "Puck" and has imported 
Raemaekers* as the most effective way of winning back 
British cable service that apparently he considers of more im- 
portance than his German-American readers. If the govern- 
ment bothers us we will gain quicker. If they don't the fight 
will be harder, but we're going to win it just the same. 

The fight for Americanism must go on. I claim the right to 
attack German-Americans as their fellow citizen. As my 

* A cartoonist. 



488 My Political Trial and Experiences 

fellow citizens, they owe me the duty of insisting upon their 
rights. By surrendering their rights they encourage oppressive 
power to take mine away. Is this not true? All rights are 
more or less relative. A surrender by one citizen affects the 
rights of all. In Chicago, Horace Brand has been fighting 
valiantly for free speech and doing effective work. Why don't 
you start a campaign against the "Tribune." Hit them and 
hit them hard. They are afraid of the German-American and 
don't forget it but when you weaken, you encourage their 
hatred to drive them from one aggression to another. Fight 
for free press and free speech and above all fight for your 
German language. Fight the men here and there who are 
driving it from the schools. Do what the French are doing in 
Canada. I make these suggestions in all kindliness and in 
the interest which I have not by any means lost even though 
I have been driven to attack by your weakness. I would be 
very pleased if from time to time you would call anything to 
my personal attention which I could use to comment on favor- 
ably along the lines I have indicated. If you supply the 
material you will find me not only ready but eager to help you, 
but Ben, I can't stand for crawling to Mitchel,* that degenerate 
Irishman — and I didn't like the Balfour business. It was 
very, very weak and got you nothing from Mitchel or anybody 
else. 

If you would follow your friends' advice once in a while and 
advise with real friends, you would avoid much trouble. That 
gang you have been friendly with will always keep you in 
trouble with your best friends. To tell me you have taken a 
"patriotic stand" is alright for the record, for the censor that 
reads my mail, but it isn't the way you feel about the situation 
and when a fellow don't feel that way, he isn't patriotic. Pa- 
triotic ! I'd go to hell for my country. That's why I am fight- 
ing with you now and fighting the British propagandists, but 
I'd take a gun and shoot myself first before I would fight along- 
side any British bastards in France, and you can send this 
to Mr. Gregory with my compliments. They called us "bas- 
tards" in 1814 (see London Times) but according to the 



* Mayor of New York. 



The Ridder Letter 489 

different breeds of Britishers they have had over there fight- 
ing for "sniviHzation," they must have been crossed by niggers 
and God knows what not, if Great Britain claims to be the 
mother of them all. Don't tell me about the patriotic stand of 
your newspaper when I know that you have adopted your pres- 
ent policy because you figured Germany was going to win the 
war and you said; "what's the use of getting in trouble with 
the damn fools over here who think they can change the 
result?" 

I say this is not Americanism because it involves a surrender 
of your private opinions that now should be public opinions. 
The question in my mind is, my country, my own United 
States ; is it going to be a British colony or a free independent 
nation ? and Ben, I say to you, straight from the shoulder, you 
and your newspaper are now working hard to make it a 
British colony, and yourself and myself British slaves. 

I wish you would read this letter before your board. Perhaps 
they are at fault. Even they may be wrong. Their money does 
not make them right. It makes many of them base cowards. 
Cowards are never right. They are losing ground daily and 
ruining the "Staats-Zeitung" besides destroying the minds of 
a large number of people who are foolish enough to follow its 
policy. But, my dear Ben, these very people will be your most 
bitter enemies when the mask has been torn from their eyes, 
as soon it will be. Get busy, retrieve yourself. Put a poker in 
your paper. Don't let Victor frighten you to death. He's 
a fine fellow but he's scared to death. All he can see are 
Germans hanging from lamp poles. Tell him not to worry. 
Put the punch in your editorials. Study "Bull" for American 
ideas. I have three good minds going over things and every 
number now will be a popular brief for peace ; against sending 
troops to Europe, against foreign loans, for free speech and a 
free press and on things that can legally be discussed under the 
American constitution. 

There's no reason why we should fall out because I am more 
friendly to your cause publicly than you are willing to publicly 
acknowledge yourself. Our private views agree. My public 



490 My Political Trial and Experiences 

and your private views are identical. Your public views are 
wrong. If your public views differ from mine you are a 
proper subject for criticism in "Bull" and you should be willing 
to stand for it. Surely you who have stood for so much from 
a whelp like Mitchel and his gang and yet remain on friendly 
terms — you are not going to turn away from a friend merely 
because he has been loyal and devoted to a cause for which you 
more than he should be willing to make every sacrifice? It 
is strange how a man can be so friendly with his enemies and 
so hostile to his friends. Is this going to be the philosophy 
of the coming peace? Is this a trait of German character? 
If it is, there will be no lasting peace because the nation with 
such character is a fit subject to become the dupe of British 
intrigue. 

Yours very truly, 

JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY. 

LETTER DEMANDING RACE CONVENTION. 

Here follows a letter written July 30, 1917, and used by the 
prosecution against me. It is one demanding a convention of 
the Irish race in America addressed to James K. McGuire, 
chairman of the National Executive Committee of the Friends 
of Irish Freedom. It was read to the jury by Mr. Osborne 
from the files of the Gaelic American of August 11th, 1917. 
Following the writing of this letter and its publication a dis- 
cussion followed in the columns of the Irish American news- 
papers which resulted in the executive committee meeting at 
the Murray Hill Hotel, New York City, on August 25th, 1917, 
and voting to hold a Race Convention for the middle of No- 
vember, 1917. The convention was never held nor was it 
ever officially called off. Those entrusted with the duty of 
calling it did not send out the notices to delegates. This letter 
is my strongest claim to real Americanism. It states my posi- 
tion clearly and judging the jury as I observed it while the 
letter was being read the impression created was very favorable 
to me and more than any other incident in the case resulted in 
my vindication. 



Letter Demanding Race Convention 491 

July 30, 1917. 
Mr, James K. McGuire, 

Chairman, Executive Committee, 
Friends of Irish Freedom, 
New York City. 

My dear Mr. McGuire — Noting the prevalent feeling for 
another Irish Race Convention, and observing your recent com- 
munication in the Irish World, and having personally sounded 
a great many on the subject, I desire to formally register my 
own personal approval of the suggestion that has been made. 
I believe that we have waited too long already. We have lost 
much by delay. If it were not for the Irish in Ireland — for 
the energetic Sinn Feiners who are out in the highways and 
byways doing in Ireland the kind of work we should be doing 
in America, I am very much afraid the Irish Question would 
be in a very sorry plight. Mr. Wilson is doing very well with 
the Irish in America. Through the Democratic Party and the 
power of patronage he is making excellent progress convincing 
our people, not with reason but with jobs, that they should 
stand aside and let him settle the Irish and Irish-American 
question. We, who delay an expression of our opinions are 
aiding him well. 

He has shown what a true Democrat he is by refusing to 
receive Victor Herbert, one of the most distinguished Amer- 
icans living, the President of the Friends of Irish Freedom, who 
visited him for the purpose of presenting a declaration of the 
Executive Committee on the Irish Question, whilst on the other 
hand he graciously received that degenerate Anglo-Irishman, 
T. P. O'Connor, who represents Liverpool in the House of 
Parliament, a man who could not be elected from any con- 
stituency in Ireland. 

Of course, whatever the President does, right or wrong, 
carries tremendous weight with the American people, but no 
American President can do an injustice to Ireland under the 
pretense of doing her justice and hold for himself the respect 
of the Irish people either in Ireland or America. 

Mr. James W. Gerard says that if the Irish in America and 



492 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Ireland follow the lead of President Wilson that Ireland "will 
be free." I wish we could make up our minds that this was 
true. Mr. Wilson has not said or done anything to create any 
confidence in such a statement. On the contrary, his whole 
line of public conduct proves conclusively that he does not want 
for Ireland any more than England is willing to give. In other 
words, Mr. Wilson has accepted the views of the English 
aristocracy (Mr. Balfour) on the Irish Question. 

There is much false sentiment just now as to what the 
Irish in America should do. I realize that it is very difficult 
to convince men of advanced years that the opinions of young 
men are of any value. The young men do the fighting — the old 
men do the talking — ^the young men face the firing squads, 
they have the enthusiasm and the will to do things but they are 
"radical" — "visionary," "are without proper balance," etc., etc. 

Have the fighting Irish suddenly become conservative ? Are 
they now spending their time casting about for reasons not to 
do things instead of being on the alert seeking for things to 
do? Has our cause become so assured that radical utterances 
may upset it? Has the American Constitution lost its genius 
so that we are willing to surrender the right of free speech, 
free press and public assemblage? Has the whole Irish race 
in America become so sensitive to newspaper criticism that it 
consults corrupt newspaper editors for their opportunities to 
demand Ireland's freedom withO>ut endangering their peace of 
mind by editorial assassination? Have the Irish in America 
surrendered the initiative in the matter of protecting American 
liberties, to the Goldmans and Berkmans as well as to the 
brave little women who received sixty days in Washington for 
proclaiming their cause at the door of the White House ? Are 
the Irish in America going to permit their flesh and blood to be 
sent to France contrary to Washington's admonition and to 
every American tradition, repulsive as it is to every instinct 
of that race, without at least voicing a solemn protest? Those 
are questions that are running in the minds of the members of 
the Friends of Irish Freedom and the Irish race in America, 
as we let the days and weeks roll by, without action. 



Letter Demanding Race Convention 493 

There are several aspects to the Irish Question. Every man 
with any perception knows that the present Irish Convention 
in Ireland was called, not to satisfy the Irish in Ireland, so 
much as the Irish in America. I quote from a despatch sent 
to the New York Times from Dublin. "England wanted to 
stand well with America," it said. Yes, England wanted to 
make it easier for Mr. Wilson to ask the Irish in America to 
shed their blood ungrudgingly upon the battlefields of Europe. 
If it is proper for Mr. Wilson to tell England what he thinks 
should be done on the Irish Question don't you think it is our 
business more than his to tell England what the Irish in 
America want. Mr. Wilson is not the "Irish in America." 
If he presumes to act for them he should consult them. He 
should heed the petitions that have been sent by the thousands 
to Washington, to the great public meetings that have been 
held throughout the country for the past fifty years, to the 
resolutions that have been sent by the thousands to Washing- 
ton demanding Ireland's Freedom, but more important still 
he should make his demands on England ring true to the 
American Declaration of Independence and American institu- 
tions. As Americans it is our duty to make him do it. 

As things stand now Admiral Sims at the head of a combined 
American-British fleet in Irish waters is ready to intercept any 
military aid that Germany may send to Ireland, any arms and 
munitions that might be sent into Ireland from other sources, 
and thus, the United States instead of demanding Ireland's 
liberty is now using her warships to prevent its accomplish- 
ment. Don't you think that we Irish in America should tell 
our people about this and protest against such a misuse of 
American warships ? Since when has it become the destiny of 
the American Republic to prevent nations from attaining their 
freedom? Is this what they call "making the world safe for 
democracy ?" 

If the Irish in America are asked to shed their blood in 
France for whatever England's aristocracy is willing to grant 
to Ireland, haven't the Irish in America something to say 
about this bargain ? But these questions relate only to Ireland. 



494 My Political Trial and Experiences 

How about the questions that relate to the American public? 

A great many people imagine that if England grants this 
or that to Ireland that the Irish in America are going to fall on 
their faces and adore England for ever and ever, Amen. There 
are no better Americans in the United States than the members 
of the Irish race, I doubt if any race amongst the American 
people can boast of such devotion to American ideals as the 
Irish have shown throughout the short history of the Republic. 
They are as willing to die to-day for human liberty as during 
any part of the past. They love American ideals so that they 
cannot brook their suppression or misrepresentation. During 
the past three years they have stood out conspicuously in their 
defence, and contrary to the impression created by the Anglo- 
press, they have opposed the policies of Woodrow Wilson not 
because they sympathized with Germany, but because they 
were horrified and indignant at the way that Mr. Wilson swept 
American ideals aside. When our race fought the good fight 
in 1776 they stood against the British conception of govern- 
ment. When they fought again in 1812 they threw the weight 
of the race against British imperialism, and again in 1861 they 
made the most heroic sacrifices to destroy human slavery 
whilst, as we all know, England followed the very same policy 
towards the Union that, before this war, the United States 
adopted against Germany, with the horrible result that like 
this, that bloody war was prolonged three years. Thus it must 
be noted that the Irish in America were always against 
England in every American war they ever engaged in, even 
the Spanish and Mexican wars where England was intriguing 
against the United States. Now, every tradition of the race 
in America, indeed, every tradition of the Republic is upset, 
and we are asked to fight not to defend the territory of the 
United States, to which purpose we would give the last drop 
of our blood, but the Continent of Europe, if you please, to 
"make the world safe for democracy (England)." 

Shall the future history of the American Republic say that 
the Irish in America submitted to this without protest? Jus- 
tice Cohalan seemed to think that they should. In fact he said 



Letter Demanding Race Convention 495 

so in so many words, for in a conversation with me he conveyed 
the impression that it would be unwise and unpatriotic, if you 
please, to make any protest against such a radical departure 
from American traditions. Personally, I have always favored 
what has been called "Universal Military Service." I served 
ten years of my life where I learned how to defend my coun- 
try against invasion. I did it because I believed every young 
American owed his country the duty of knowing how to defend 
her in case she was attacked, but I say frankly that I did not do 
that to become a part of Europe's wars or European im- 
perialism. I favor conscription for defense. I believe 
that conscription for foreign service is national imbecility. 
No citizen of the American Republic should be dragged 
from his home by government mandate and sent across 
three thousand miles of ocean "because France needs 
help," or "because England needs help" or because a 
foreign nation is about to be destroyed, particularly when 
our country is full of Britishers of military age who 
find it more convenient to grab American dividends than fight 
and die in the defense of England while the armies of the 
enemy of their country are but sixty miles away, so close that 
the thunder of their guns can be heard in the capital of their 
country. I am worried, too, about Japan, and I am afraid that 
it would suit Japan's plans only too well, to send the flower of 
American manhood across three thousand miles of sea, infested 
with submarines, that may be able at the proper moment to 
maroon them on foreign soil whilst Japan strikes us from the 
West. 

As an American, therefore, true to myself, my country, its 
traditions and its interests, I object to the sending of American 
troops to Europe. I differ strongly with those who believe that 
a protest by the Irish in America against such a departure 
from American traditions would be construed as unpatriotic. 
I am not guided by the diabolical mendacity of the Anglo-press 
in judging of the rectitude of my own conduct. Is "what the 
Anglo-press might say" a new censor over Irish-American 
societies ? I am sure that this evil institution will be delighted 



496 My Political Trial and Experiences 

to know that it has at last succeeded in inducing some of the 
Irish in A,n^erica tO' submit to them their plans for approval. 
It will puzzle the boys in Ireland who have swept aside the 
same institution there as a menace to Ireland, to know that it 
wields potent influence over the conduct of freemen in 
America. 

These things are uppermost to-day in the minds of the 
race in America. What opportunity shall be given to express 
them? I can conceive of many different viewpoints taken at 
an Irish race convention by the men who have been drafted 
by the Government. If we don't hurry the convention along 
these men will have duties elsewhere in military camps. Of 
course, after they have been removed from their homes the 
scions of the race, some of whom won't suffer by the draft 
because not one member of their immediate families have been 
drafted, men, who will be exempt from the draft, will express 
for the men who cannot attend, views that may be colored by 
their own disinterest. 

A race convention called now will clarify a very much 
muddled and dangerous situation. It will be for the best in- 
terests of our country. Our fellow-citizens are entitled to know 
how we feel. Congress wants to know. The President, too, is 
entitled to enlightenment upon it. Men are going around in 
private conversation and objecting to sending troops to Europe, 
the men in the Irish organizations are indignant about it — isn't 
our country entitled to know this ? Is it fair to send to France 
a grumbling, grouchy army of men whose morale has been des- 
troyed because they have never had an opportunity to register 
a protest against their going there ? I believe the Government 
should know these things. The Government has secret agents 
working around amongst the people endeavoring to obtain their 
opinions and feelings — the men charged with the responsibility 
of this war will appreciate our candor if we speak, openly, what 
we have been whispering secretly. 

I want light shed upon these great questions. I want to hear 
other members of my race upon them. If it is right to send 
troops to Europe I want to be set right. I am anxious to 



Letter Demanding Race Convention 497 

serve my country as God gives me the light to see the right. 
If it is wise, patriotic, and necessary, to send American troops 
to Europe, I want to know it, the members of our race should 
know it, so that we can enter into the spirit of the thing with 
Irish dash, and go to France, fraternize with the British, and 
die amidst the commingled strains of "The Star-Spangled 
Banner" and ''God Save the King." 

Of course, it is hardly necessary to say to you, a man who 
has been so brave and heroic, so devoted, too, with your 
time, brains and money, that every citizen of Irish blood in 
America has the right, under the Constitution, to freely 
express his opinions on all public questions, and, with his 
fellow citizens, to assemble in a public gathering for the pur- 
pose of petitioning the Government for a redress of his 
grievances. As the rights of free speech and public assemblage 
are guaranteed by the Constitution a Race Convention would 
be amply protected against any lawless effort to disrupt it. 

In your letter to the Irish World you lay great stress on the 
importance of outlining in advance the work of the convention. 
This could be done by the Executive Committee of the Friends 
of Irish Freedom. 

The Convention could consistently handle these propositions : 

First — It could protest against the sending of American 
troops to France, should demand the return of those already 
there, and demand that the men who have been conscripted 
should be trained for the defense of the North American 
Hemisphere. 

Second — It could demand that the United States compel 
England to free Ireland in deference to England's professed 
cause of the war and the wishes of the Irish people expressed 
in the overwhelming victories of Sinn Feiners for Parliamen- 
tary seats. 

Third — It could place the Irish in America on record as 
favoring peace with absolute freedom for all separate and 
distinct nationalities. 

Fourth — It could protest against any dispositions of Amer- 
ican naval or military forces so that they would interfere with 



498 My Political Trial and Experiences 

any military plans of an Irish Revolutionary party in Ireland. 

Fifth — It could protest against any interference on the part 
of the Government with the constitutional rights of any Irish- 
American Society or newspaper. 

Sixth — It could proclaim the inalienable rights of free 
speech, free press and the right of the people to assemble peace- 
ably and petition the President and Congress for a redress of 
their grievances. 

Seventh — It could protest against the policy of the President 
and Congress in ignoring the demands of the Irish in America 
for the passage of the Mason Resolution demanding the com- 
plete Independence of Ireland. 

Eighth — It could reserve the right to do any other act and 
thing consistent with the duties owed by the Irish in America 
to the United States and Ireland. 

In taking up these questions we will incur the enmity of the 
press, politicians, financiers, pro-British influences, but we shall 
win the sympathy and support of the great masses of the Amer- 
ican people who are gradually becoming aroused to the serious- 
ness of the dilemma in which they now find themselves. 

We must look ahead, Mr. McGuire. Future generations 
will have a much better perspective of the things that many of 
our good people have been blinded to by their proximity to 
the events of the present day. The outcome of this war, the 
sacrifices that have been made, the benefits or evils it will 
bring to mankind, the effect of it upon American ideals and 
traditions, the bankruptcy, financial burdens, misery, desolation 
and distress it will cause, so lost to the public view now, will 
all be considered at a future day, in judging whether any ac- 
tion we may take now, is right or wrong. That is really the 
most important thing for us to consider — what will be the 
judgment of the future? The race in America has never made 
any mistake in the past — will it make any mistake now in 
remaining consistent to the traditions of the race in America, 
or, is it to write itself down as a slave race that, despite its con- 
victions, stood with the President right or wrong. 

If I could have been present at the conference at Chicago, 



Letter Demanding Race Convention 499 

held now about two months ago, I would have stood with Mr. 
Kelly of Pittsfield, in his demand for a Race Convention. A 
convention was held in March, 1916, and for some reason or 
other was passed in March, 1917. Why? Have the Irish or- 
ganizations adopted the custom of some of the German- 
American organizations of avoiding public gatherings during 
the war ? If it were possible to hold a Race Convention, every 
month, it should be done. In these days of fast moving events 
we could consistently hold a race gathering every week. 

There seems to be some fear — some bugaboo that somebody 
will come to the convention and "spoil everything." Well, 
Mr. McGuire, I hope this convention will be a free convention. 
We who are struggling for freedom must in our deliberations 
give every opportunity for freedom of discussion. We must 
not run this convention so much like a machine. It was all very 
well' for the delegates who came to the last one to sit and listen 
to the men who were presented to them on the stage. If 
anybody wants to talk, let him talk. If it is for or against us 
let us have it. If we are right we should have no fear of con- 
trary opinions that are wrong. It is better — it is healthier — 
that contrary views should be received. True harmony is not 
a unison of sounds but a blending of different tones. Likewise, 
true unity is a harmonizing of different and varying views. If 
there was ever a time in our history for a full, free and frank 
expression of opinion — it is now. By all means let us have it. 

Trusting that this communication will receive your earnest 
and immediate attention, I remain with best wishes and 
warmest personal regards. 

Yours very sincerely, 

JEREMIAH A. O'LEARY. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE INDICTMENTS. 

Five indictments were actually filed against me. The first 
was the original "Bull" indictment, filed on November 23, 1917, 
which contained two counts. This indictment is included in the 
later indictment filed June 7, 1918, charging me with a con- 
spiracy to obstruct justice. I have therefore refrained from 
setting forth the original "Bull" indictment in order to avoid 
repetition. 

The second indictment was the second "Bull" accusation 
called a superseding indictment, which elaborated the written 
accusation filed November 23d, 1917, so as to charge me 
with eight counts. It was upon this indictment I was tried, and 
acquitted of seven of the eight counts, the jury disagreeing 
eight to four in my favor on the eighth count. This was a 
virtual acquittal and vindication, since on this count two-thirds 
of the jury voted and fought for fifty-three hours to acquit me. 

The third indictment was the fourth actually filed. This 
charged me with a capital offense, conspiracy to commit es- 
pionage during war. It should be observed that during my 
trial not one fact was adduced to support the charge. It 
was to bolster up this infamous indictment that Martin and 
Pettit were produced. There was no other evidence offered 
save that of the confirmed drug addict, Victorica. This indict- 
ment I have also set forth herein. 

A fifth indictment was filed which was a reiteration of all 
the alleged facts set forth in the fourth indictment charging 
me with a conspiracy to commit treason, an indictment con- 
ceded later by J. Winship Taylor in open court to be without 
foundation. There is no charge known as a "conspiracy to 
commit treason," and Judge Julius Mayer so stated in discus- 

500 



The Indictments 501 

sing the indictment in court during an argument on the Fricke 
case. The fifth indictment I have not set forth since it would 
savor of repetition. 

DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES OF 

AMERICA 

for the 

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK 

At a Stated Term of the District Court of the United States 
of America for the Southern District of New York, begun 
and held in the City and County of New York, within and 
for the District aforesaid, on the first Tuesday in April, in 
the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and eighteen, 
and continued by adjournment to and including the 7th day 
of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred 
and eighteen. 

Southern District of New York, ss: The Grand Jurors of 
the United States of America, within and for the District 
aforesaid, on their oaths present that throughout the period 
of time from the 6th day of April, 1917, to the day of the find- 
ing and presentation of this indictment, the United States 
has been at war with the Imperial German Government and 
that continuously from the 15th day of June, 1917, until the 
1st day of November, 1917, and when the United States has 
been at war, as aforesaid, American Truth Society, a corpora- 
tion duly organized and existing under the laws of the State 
of New York, Bull Publishing Company, Inc., a corporation 
duly organized and existing under the laws of the State of 
New York, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. 
Bedford, hereinafter referred to as the defendants, at the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction of 
this Court, unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and feloniously 
did conspire together and agree among themselves, and with 
divers other persons whose names are to the Grand Jurors 
unknown, to violate the provisions of Section 3 of Title I of the 
Act of Congress approved June 15, 1917, entitled "An Act 



502 My Political Trial and Experiences 

to punish acts of interference with the foreign relations, the 
neutrality, and the foreign commerce of the United States, to 
punish espionage, and better to enforce the criminal laws of 
the United States, and for other purposes," that is to say, 
the said defendants did unlawfully and wilfully conspire to- 
gether and agree among themselves and with divers other 
persons whose names are to the Grand Jurors unknown, when 
the United States was at war with the Imperial German Gov- 
ernment, unlawfully and wilfully to cause, and attempt to 
cause insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty 
in the military and naval forces of the United States, by urg- 
ing, inducing, persuading, encouraging and soliciting members 
of the military and naval forces of the United States, and 
persons liable to service therein under the provisions of the 
Act of Congress, approved May 18, 1917, entitled, "An Act 
to authorize the President to increase temporarily the Mili- 
tary Establishment of the United States," and the Regulations 
duly made and promulgated in pursuance thereof when such 
persons shall be inducted into the military service to disobey 
the lawful commands and orders of their lawful superiors, and 
to be unfaithful to the Government of the United States and 
to the commands and orders of their lawful superiors, and 
to rise and rebel against the lawful and duly constituted author- 
ities of the military and naval forces aforesaid, and to reject 
and refuse to perform the duties lawfully imposed upon them 
by the Government of the United States, its military and naval 
officers and its officials, to the injury of the service and of the 
United States, and it was a part of said conspiracy that the 
said defendants would attempt to effectuate and accomplish the 
aforesaid evil, wilful, unlawful, and felonious designs and 
purposes through and by means of public speeches, private 
solicitation and the publication, distribution and sale in the 
City, State and Southern District of New York of a certain 
monthly magazine called "Bull" and the circulation and dis- 
tribution of the same throughout the said City, State and 
Southern District of New York and throughout the United 
States, said magazine "Bull" being- designed to be and being 



The Indictments 503 

published, distributed and sold by the defendant Bull Pub- 
lishing Company, Inc. under the direction, supervision and 
control of the defendants American Truth Society, Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, and being 
designed to contain and containing articles, cartoons and poems 
calculated, intended and of a character to create and promote 
insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty as here- 
inabove described among the persons belonging to the military 
and naval forces of the United States and among those liable 
to service therein as aforesaid pursuant to the provisions of 
the Act of Congress, approved May 18, 1917, and the Regula- 
tions duly made and promulgated in pursuance thereof. 

OVERT ACTS 

And to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this 
Court, the defendant, Bull Publishing Company, Inc., on or 
about June 27, 1917, did cause to be delivered to the printer, 
Isaac Goldman Company, copy for the August 1917 issue of 
"Bull," the aforesaid magazine. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction 
of this Court, the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, between 
June 15, 1917 and July 9, 1917, did write and cause to be pub- 
lished in the August 1917 issue of "Bull" an article entitled, 
"The Progress of the War." 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction 
of this Court, the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, on or about 
August 9, 1917, did write a letter to one Bernard H. Ridder, 
President of the "Staats Zeitung," a newspaper published in 
the City of New York. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction of 
this Court, the defendant, Adolf Stern, continuously between 
June 15, 1917 and November 9, 1917, acted as business 



504 My Political Trial and Experiences 

manager of the defendant Bull Publishing Company, Inc., and 
on August 7, 1917 he wrote a letter to Isaac Goldman Com- 
pany ordering 24,000 copies of the September issue of the 
aforesaid "Bull" and specifying deliveries thereof. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction of 
this Court, the defendant, Luther S. Bedford, continuously 
between, on or about July 1, 1917 and September 1, 1917, 
acted as managing editor of said magazine "Bull" and pro- 
cured to be drawn by James Wright a cartoon entitled "The 
Bull's Eye," which cartoon was later published in the October 
issue of "Bull," the magazine aforesaid. 

Against the peace of the United States and their dignity, 
and contrary to the form of the Statute of the United States 
in such case made and provided. (Act approved June 15, 
1917, Title I, Section 4). 

SECOND COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid, on their oaths aforesaid, 
do further present that throughout the period of time from 
the 6th day of April, 1917, to the day of the finding and pre- 
sentation of this indictment, the United States has been at 
war with the Imperial German Government and that continu- 
ously since the 15th day of June, 1917, and while the United 
States has been at war, as aforesaid, American Truth Society, 
a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws of 
the State of New York, Bull Publishing Company, Inc., a 
corporation duly organized and existing under the laws of 
the State of New York, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Adolf Stem 
and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter referred to as the defend- 
ants, at the Southern District of New York and within the 
jurisdiction of this Court, unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and 
feloniously did conspire together and agree among themselves, 
and "With divers other persons whose names are to the Grand 
Jurors unknown, to violate the provisions of Section 3 of 
Title il of the Act of Congress, approved June 15, 1917, entitled 



The Indictments 505 

"An Act To punish acts of interference with the foreign rela- 
tions, the neutrahty, and the foreign commerce of the United 
States, to punish espionage, and better to enforce the criminal 
laws of the United States, and for other purposes," that is to 
say, the said defendants did unlawfully and wilfully conspire 
together and agree among themselves, and with divers other 
persons whose names are to the Grand Jurors unknown, when 
the United States was at war with the Imperial German Gov- 
ernment, unlawfully and wilfully to obstruct the recruiting 
and enlistment service of the United States to the injury of 
the service and of the United States, by impeding, hindering 
and retarding the increase of the Military Establishment of 
the United States, and it was a part of said conspiracy that 
the defendants would attempt to effectuate and accomplish the 
aforesaid evil, wilful, unlawful and felonious designs and pur- 
poses through and by means of public speeches, private solicita- 
tion and the publication, distribution and sale in the City, 
State and Southern District of New York, of a certain monthly 
magazine called "Bull," and the circulation and distribution 
of the same throughout the said City, State and Southern 
district of New York and throughout the United States among 
persons whose names are to the Grand Jurors unknown, but 
who may be and are described by the Grand Jurors as persons 
in part liable to service in the military forces of the United 
States under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved 
May 18th, 1917 entitled "An Act to authorize the President 
to increase temporarily the Military Establishment of the 
United States" and the Regulations duly made and promul- 
gated in pursuance thereof, and in other part available and 
eligible for enlistment and recruiting in the military forces 
of the United States, said magazine "Bull" being designed to 
contain and containing articles, poems, cartoons and pictures 
calculated, intended and of a character to induce, encourage, 
persuade and solicit persons liable to service in the military 
forces of the United States as aforesaid, to refuse to submit 
to registration and draft for service in the said military 
forces of the United States and to induce, encourage, persuade 



506 My Political Trial and Experiences 

and solicit persons available and eligible for enlistment and 
recruiting in said military forces to fail and to refuse to enlist 
for service therein. 

OVERT ACTS. 

And to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this 
Court, the defendant, Bull Publishing Company, Inc., on or 
about June 27, 1917, did cause to be delivered to the printer, 
Isaac Goldman Company, copy for the August 1917 issue 
of "Bull," the aforesaid magazine. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction 
of this Court, the defendant Jeremiah A. O'Leary, between 
June 15, 1917 and July 9, 1917, did write and cause to be 
published in the August 1917 issue of "Bull" an article en- 
titled, "The Progress of the War." 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction 
of this Court, the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, on or about 
August 9, 1917, did write a letter to one Bernard H. Ridder, 
President of the "Staats Zeitung," a newspaper published in 
the City of New York ; 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction of 
this Court, the defendant, Adolf Stern, continuously between 
June 15, 1917 and November 9, 1917, acted as business man- 
ager of the defendant Bull Publishing Company, Inc., and on 
August 7, 1917 wrote a letter to Isaac (joldman Company 
ordering 24,000 copies of the September issue of the aforesaid 
"Bull" and specifying deliveries thereof; 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction of 
this Court, the defendant, Luther S. Bedford, continuously 
between, on or about July 1, 1917 and September 1, 1917, acted 
as managing editor of said magazine "Bull" and procured to 



The Indictments 507 

be drawn by James Wright a cartoon entitled "The Bull's 
Eye," which cartoon was later published in the October issue 
of "Bull," the magazine aforesaid; 

Against the peace of the United States and their dignity 
and contrary to the form of the Statute of the United States 
in such case made and provided. (Act approved June 15, 1917, 
Title I, Section 4). 

THIRD COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid on their oaths aforesaid, 
do further present that throughout the period of time from 
the 6th day of April 1917, to the date of the finding and 
presentation of this indictment, the United States has been 
at war with the Imperial German Government, and between 
the 15th day of June, 1917, and the 1st day of November, 1917, 
and while the Uunited States has been at war as aforesaid, 
American Truth Society, a corporation duly organized and 
existing under the laws of the State of New York, Bull Pub- 
lishing Company, Inc., a corporation duly organized and 
existing under the laws of the State of New York, Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter 
referred to as the defendants, at the Southern District of New 
York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, unlawfully, 
wilfully, knowingly and feloniously attempted to cause in- 
subordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty in the 
military and naval forces of the United States, to the injury 
of the service and of the United States, in that they did urge, 
persuade, encourage and solicit members of the military and 
naval forces of the United States and persons liable to service 
therein, under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved 
May 18, 1917, entitled "An Act to authorize the President to 
increase temporarily the Military Establishment of the United 
States," and the Regulations duly made and promulgated in 
pursuance thereof, when said persons should be inducted into 
said service to disobey the lawful commands and orders of 
their lawful superiors and to be unfaithful to the Government 
of the United States and to the commands and orders of their 



508 My Political Trial and Experiences 

lawful superiors, and to rise and rebel against the lawful and 
duly constituted authorities of the military and naval forces 
aforesaid, and to reject and refuse to perform the duties im- 
posed upon them by the Government of the United States, 
its military and naval officers and its ofificials, to the injury 
of the service and of the United States, through and by means 
of the publication, distribution and sale in the City, State and 
Southern District of New York of the August 1917 issue of a 
certain magazine called "Bull" and the circulation and dis- 
tribution of the same throughout the said City, State and 
Southern District of New York and throughout the United 
States; said issue of said magazine "Bull" being published, 
distributed and sold by the defendant. Bull Publishing Com- 
pany, Inc., under the direction, supervision and control of the 
defendants, American Truth Society, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, 
Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, and containing articles, 
cartoons and poems calculated, intended and of a character 
to create and promote insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny 
and refusal of duty as hereinbefore described, among the 
persons belonging to the military and naval forces of the 
United States and among those liable to service therein as 
aforesaid, pursuant to the provisions of the Act of Congress 
approved May 18, 1917, and the Regulations duly made and 
promulgated in pursuance thereof; a copy of the said Augttst 
1917 issue of said magazine "Bull" is hereto annexed and 
made a part hereof and marked Exhibit "A" said articles, 
cartoons and poems being too lengthy to be herein set forth 
fully and at length, against the peace of the United States 
and their dignity, and contrary to the form of the Statute 
of the United States in such case made and provided. (Act 
approved June 15, 1917, Title I, Section 3). 

FOURTH COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid on their oaths aforesaid 
do further present that throughout the period of time from 
the 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the finding and 



The Indictments 509 

presentation of this indictment, the United States has been at 
war with the Imperial German Government and between the 
15th day of June, 1917, and the 1st day of November, 1917, 
while the United States has been at war as aforesaid, American 
Truth Society, a corporation duly organized and existing 
under the laws of the State of New York, Bull PubHshing 
Company, Inc., a corporation duly organized and existing under 
the laws of the State of New York, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, 
Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter referred to 
as the defendants, at the Southern District of New York and 
within the jurisdiction of this Court, unlawfully, wilfully, 
knowingly and feloniously did obstruct the recruiting and en- 
listment service of the United States, to the injury of the ser- 
vice of the United States, in that they impeded, hindered and 
retarded the increase of the Military Establishment of the 
United States, through and by means of the publication, dis- 
tribution and sale in the City, State and Southern District of 
New York of the August 1917 issue of a certain monthly 
magazine called "Bull"' and the circulation and distribution 
of the same throughout the said City, State and Southern Dis- 
trict of New York, and throughout the United States among 
persons whose names are to the Grand Jurors unknown, but 
who may be and are described by the Grand Jurors as persons 
in part liable to service in the military forces of the United 
States under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved 
May 18, 1917, entitled "An Act to authorize the President 
to increase temporarily the Military Establishment of the Uni- 
ted States," and the Regulations duly made and promulgated 
in pursuance thereof and in other part available and eligible 
for enlistment and recruiting in the military forces of the 
United States ; said August 1917 issue of said magazine "Bull" 
containing articles, poems, cartoons and pictures calculated, 
intended and of a character to induce, encourage, persuade 
and solicit persons liable to service in the military forces of the 
United States as aforesaid, to refuse to submit to registration 
and draft for service in the military forces of the United States 
and to induce, encourage, persuade and solicit persons avail- 



510 My Political Trial and Experiences 

able and eligible for enlistment and recruiting in said military 
forces, to fail and refuse to enlist for service therein; a copy 
of the said August 1917 issue of said magazine "Bull" is 
hereto annexed and made a part hereof and marked Exhibit 
"A," said articles, cartoons and poems being too lengthy to be 
herein set forth fully and at length; against the peace of the 
United States and their dignity and contrary to the form of 
the Statute of the United States in such case made and 
provided. (Act approved June 15, 1917, Title I, Section 3.) 

FIFTH COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid on their oaths aforesaid, 
do further present that throughout the period of time from the 
6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the finding and pre- 
sentation of this indictment, the United States has been at 
war with the Imperial German Government, and between the 
15th day of June, 1917, and the 1st day of November, 1917, 
and while the United States has been at war as aforesaid, 
American Truth Society, a corporation duly organized and 
existing under the laws of the State of New York, Bull Pub- 
lishing Company, Inc., a corporation duly organized and ex- 
isting under the laws of the State of New York, Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter 
referred to as the defendants, at the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, unlaw- 
fully, wilfully, knowingly and feloniously attempted to cause 
insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty in the 
military and naval forces of the United States, to the injury 
of the service and of the United States, in that they did 
urge, persuade, encourage and solicit members of the military 
and naval forces of the United States and persons liable to 
service therein, under the provisions of the Act of Congress 
approved May 18, 1917, entitled "An Act to authorize the 
President to increase temporarily the Military Establishment 
of the United States," and the Regulations duly made and 
promulgated in pursuance thereof, when said persons should 
be inducted into said service to disobey the lawful commands 



The Indictments 511 

and orders of their lawful superiors and to be unfaithful to 
the Government of the United States and to the commands 
and orders of their lawful superiors, and to rise and rebel 
against the lawful and duly constituted authorities of the mili- 
tary and naval forces aforesaid, and to reject and refuse to 
perform the duties imposed upon them by the Government of 
the United States, its military and naval officers and its 
officials, to the injury of the service and of the United States, 
through and by means of the publication, distribution and 
sale in the City, State and Southern District of New York 
of the September 1917 issue of a certain monthly magazine 
called "Bull" and the circulation and distribution of the same 
throughout the said City, State and Southern District of New 
York and throughout the United States; said issue of said 
magazine "Bull" being published, distributed and sold by the 
defendant. Bull Publishing Company, Inc., under the direction, 
supervision and control of the defendants, American Truth 
Society, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. 
Bedford, and containing articles, cartoons and poems calcu- 
lated, intended and of a character to create and promote in- 
subordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty as here- 
inbefore described, among the persons belonging to the mili- 
tary and naval forces of the United States and among those 
liable to service therein as aforesaid, pursuant to the provi- 
sions of the Act of Congress approved May 18, 1917, and the 
Regulations duly made and promulgated in pursuance thereof ; 
a copy of the said September 1917 issue of said magazine 
"Bull" is hereto annexed and made a part hereof and marked 
Exhibit "B," said articles, cartoons and poems being too 
lengthy to be herein set forth fully and at length ; against the 
peace of the United States and their dignity, and contrary to 
the form of the Statute of the United States in such case 
made and provided. (Act approved June 15, 1917, Title I, 
Section 3.) 

SIXTH COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid on their oaths aforesaid 
do further present that throughout the period of time from the 



512 My Political Trial and Experiences 

6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the finding and presenta- 
tion of this indictment, the United States has been at war with 
the Imperial German Government and between the 15th day 
of June, 1917, and the 1st day of November, 1917, while the 
United States has been at war as aforesaid, American Truth 
Society, a corporation duly organized and existing under the 
laws of the State of New York, Bull Publishing Company, 
Inc., a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws 
of the State of New York, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Adolf Stern 
and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter referred to as the defend- 
ants, at the Southern District of New York and within the juris- 
diction of this Court, unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and 
feloniously did obstruct the recruiting and enlistment service 
of the United States, to the injury of the service and of the 
United States, in that they impeded, hindered and retarded 
the increase of the Military Establishment of the United States, 
through and by means of the publication, distribution and sale 
in the City, State and Southern District of New York of the 
September 1917 issue of a certain monthly magazine called 
"Bull" and the circulation and distribution of the same 
throughout the said City, State and Southern District of New 
York, and throughout the United States among persons whose 
names are to the Grand Jurors unknown, but who may be 
and are described by the Grand Jurors as persons in part 
liable to service in the military forces of the United States 
under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved May 18, 
1917, entitled "An Act to authorize the President to increase 
temporarily the Military Establishment of the United States," 
and the Regulations duly made and promulgated in pursuance 
thereof and in other part available and eligible for enlistment 
and recruiting in the military forces of the United States, said 
September 1917 issue of said magazine "Bull" containing 
articles, poems, cartoons and pictures calculated, intended and 
of a character to induce, encourage, persuade and solicit per- 
sons liable to service in the military forces of the United States 
as aforesaid, to refuse to submit to registration and draft for 
service in the military forces of the United States and to 



The Indictments 513 

induce, encourage, persuade and solicit persons available and 
eligible for enlistment and recruiting in said military forces, 
to fail and refuse to enlist for service therein; a copy of the 
said September 1917 issue of said magazine "Bull" is hereto 
annexed and made a part hereof and marked Exhibit "B," 
said articles, cartoons and poems being too lengthy to be herein 
set forth fully and at length; against the peace of the United 
States and their dignity and contrary to the form of the 
Statute of the United States in such case made and provided. 
(Act approved June 15, 1917, Title I, Section 3.) 

SEVENTH COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid on their oaths aforesaid, 
do further present that throughout the period of time from the 
6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the finding and presenta- 
tion of this indictment, the United States has been at war 
with the Imperial German Government, and between the 15th 
day of June, 1917, and the 1st day of November, 1917, 
and while the United States has been at war as aforesaid, 
American Truth Society, a corporation duly organized and 
existing under the laws of the State of New York, Bull Pub- 
lishing Company, Inc., a corporation duly organized and 
existing under the laws of the State of New York, Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter 
referred to as the defendants, at the Southern District of New 
York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, unlawfully, 
wilfully, knowingly and feloniously attempted to cause insub- 
ordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty in the mili- 
tary and naval forces of the United States, to the injury of 
the service and of the United States in that they did urge, 
persuade, encourage and solicit members of the military and 
naval forces of the United States and persons liable to service 
therein, under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved 
May 18, 1917, entitled "An Act to authorize the President to 
increase temporarily the Military Establishment of the United 



514 My Political Trial and Experiences 

States," and the Regulations duly made and promulgated in 
pursuance thereof, when said persons should be inducted into 
said service to disobey the lawful commands and orders of their 
lawful superiors and to be unfaithful to the Government of 
the United States and to the commands and orders of their 
lawful superiors, and to rise and rebel against the lawful 
and duly constituted authorities of the military and naval 
forces aforesaid, and to reject and refuse to perform the 
duties imposed upon them by the Government of the United 
States, its military and naval officers and its officials to the 
injury of the service and of the United States, through and 
by means of the publication, distribution and sale in the City, 
State and Southern District of New York of the October 1917 
issue of a certain monthly magazine called "Bull" and the cir- 
culation and distribution of the same throughout the said City, 
State and Southern District of New York and throughout the 
United States; said issue of said magazine "Bull" being pub- 
lished, distributed and sold by the defendant. Bull Publishing 
Company, Inc., under the direction, supervision and control 
of the defendants, American Truth Society, Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, and containing 
articles, cartoons and poems calculated, intended and of a 
character to create and promote insubordination, disloyalty, 
mutiny and refusal of duty as hereinbefore described, among 
the persons belonging to the military and naval forces of the 
United States and among those liable to service therein as 
aforesaid, pursuant to the provisions of the Act of Congress 
approved May 18, 1917, and the Regulations duly made and 
promulgated in pursuance thereof; a copy of the said October 
1917 issue of said magazine "Bull" is hereto annexed and made 
a part hereof and marked Exhibit "C," said articles, cartoons 
and poems being too lengthy to be herein set forth fully and 
at length; against the peace of the United States and their 
dignity, and contrary to the form of the Statute of the United 
States in such case made and provided. (Act approved June 
15, 1917, Title I, Section 3.) 



The Indictments 515 

EIGHTH COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid on their oaths aforesaid 
do further present that throughout the period of time from the 
6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the finding and presenta- 
tion of this indictment, the United States has been at war 
with the Imperial German Government and between the 15th 
day of June, 1917, and the 1st day of November, 1917, while 
the United States has been at war as aforesaid, American 
Truth Society, a corporation duly organized and existing 
under the laws of the State of New York, Bull Publishing 
Company, Inc., a corporation duly organized and existing 
under the laws of the State of New York, Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary, Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter 
referred to as the defendants, at the Southern District of New 
York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, unlawfully, 
wilfully, knowingly and feloniously did obstruct the recruit- 
ing and enlistment service of the United States, to the injury 
of the service and of the United States, in that they impeded, 
hindered and retarded the increase of the Military Establish- 
ment of the United States, through and by means of the pub- 
lication, distribution and sale in the City, State and Southern 
District of New York of the October 1917 issue of a certain 
monthly magazine called "Bull" and the circulation and dis- 
tribution of the same throughout the said City, State and 
Southern District of New York, and throughout the United 
States among persons whose names are to the Grand Jurors 
unknown, but who may be and are described by the Grand 
Jurors as persons in part liable to service in the military forces 
of the United States under the provisions of the Act of 
Congress approved May 18, 1917, entitled "An Act to authorize 
the President to increase temporarily the Military Establish- 
ment of the United States," and the Regulations duly made and 
promulgated in pursuance thereof and in other part available 
and eligible for enlistment and recruiting in the military forces 
of the United States ; said October 1917 issue of said magazine 
"Bull" containing articles, poems, cartoons and pictures cal- 
culated, intended and of a character to induce, encourage, per- 



516 My Political Trial and Experiences 

suade and solicit persons liable to service in the military forces 
of the United States as aforesaid, to refuse to submit to regis- 
tration and draft for service in the military forces of the 
United States and to induce, encourage, persuade and solicit 
persons available and eligible for enlistment and recruiting in 
said military forces, to fail and refuse to enlist for service 
therein; a copy of the said October 1917 issue of said maga- 
zine "Bull" is hereto annexed and made a part hereof and 
marked Exhibit "C," said articles, cartoons and poems being 
too lengthy to be herein set forth fully and at length ; against 
the peace of the United States and their dignity, and contrary 
to the form of the Statute of the United States in such case 
made and provided. (Act approved June 15, 1917, Title I, 
Section 3.) 

FRANCIS G. CAFFEY, 

United States Attorney. 

DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES OF 

AMERICA 

for the 

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK 

At a stated Term of the District Court of the United States 
of America for the Southern District of New York, begun and 
held in the City and County of New York, within and for the 
District aforesaid on the 17th day of April, in the year 
of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and eighteen, and 
continued to and including, by adjournment, the 7th day of 
June, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and 
eighteen. 

Southern District of New York, ss: The Grand Jurors of 
the United States of America for the District aforesaid, on their 
oaths present that heretofore, to wit, on the 23rd day of Nov- 
ember, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred 
and seventeen, at and within the Southern District of New 
York, within the jurisdiction of this Court and in the United 
States District Court for the Southern District of New York, 



The Indictments 517 

after proceedings before a Grand Jury of the United States 
duly organized, impaneled, constituted and sworn in the United 
States District Court for the Southern District of New York, 
sitting in and for the Southern District of New York, there 
was voted and filed in the United States District Court for the 
Southern District of New York a true bill of indictment in 
the manner following, that is to say : 

DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES OF 

AMERICA 

for the 

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK 

At a Stated Term of the District Court of the United States 
for the Southern District of New York, begun and held in the 
City and County of New York, within and for the District 
aforesaid, on the first Tuesday of November, in the year of our 
Lord one thousand nine hundred and seventeen, and continued 
by adjournment to and including the twenty-third day of 
November, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred 
and seventeen. 

Southern District of New York, ss: The Grand Jurors of 
the United States of America, within and for the District afore- 
said, on their oaths present that throughout the period of time 
from the 6th day of April, 1917, to the day of the finding and 
presentation of this indictment, the United States has been 
at war with the Imperial German Government and that con- 
tinuously since the 15th day of June, 1917, and while the 
United States has been at war, as aforesaid. Bull Publishing 
Company, Inc., a corporation duly organized and existing 
under the laws of the State of New York, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, 
Adolf Stern and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter referred to as 
the defendants, at the Southern District of New York and 
within the jurisdiction of this court, unlawfully, wilfully, 
knowingly and feloniously did conspire together and agree 
among themselves, and with divers other persons whose names 
are to the Grand Jurors unknown, to violate the provisions of 



518 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Section 3 of Title 1 of the Act of Congress approved June 15, 
1917, entitled "An Act to Punish Acts of Interference with the 
Foreign Relations, the Neutrality of the Foreign Commerce of 
the United States, to punish Espionage, and better to enforce 
the Criminal Laws of the United States, and for other pur- 
poses" ; that is to say, the said defendants did conspire together 
and agree between themselves, and with divers other persons 
whose names are to the Grand Jurors unknown, when the 
United States was at war with the Imperial German Govern- 
ment, unlawfully and wilfully to cause, and attempt to cause, 
insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty in 
the military and naval forces of the United States to the injury 
of the service and of the United States, through and by means 
of the publication in the City, State and Southern District of 
New York, of a certain monthly magazine called "Bull" and 
the circulation and distribution of the same throughout the 
said City, State and Southern District of New York, and 
throughout the United States among persons, whose names 
are to the Grand Jurors unknown, but who may be and are 
described by the Grand Jurors as persons in part belonging 
to the said military and naval forces of the United States and 
in other part liable to service therein, under the provisions 
of the Act of Congress approved May 18th, 1917, entitled "An 
Act to authorize the President to increase temporarily the 
Military Establishment of the United States"; said magazine 
being designed to contain, and containing, articles, poems, car- 
toons and pictures calculated and intended to create and pro- 
mote insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny and refusal of duty 
among the persons belonging to said military and naval forces 
of the United States, and among those liable to serve therein, 
pursuant to the provision of the said Act approved May 18th, 
1917. 

And to effect the object of said conspiracy, the defendant. 
Bull Publishing Company, Inc., at divers times between June 
15, 1917, and November 9th, 1917, did cause to be printed in 
the City, County and State of New York, and to be distributed 
in said City, County and State, and elsewhere throughout the 



The Indictments 519 

United States, certain issues of said magazine "Bull" for the 
months of August, September and October, 1917. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, the 
defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, between June 15, 1917, and 
July 15, 1917, did write and cause to be published in the 
August, 1917, issue of "Bull" an article entitled, "The Progress 
of the War." 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, the de- 
fendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, on or about August 9, 1917, 
did write a letter to one Bernard H. Ridder, President of the 
"Staats Zeitung," a newspaper published in the City of New 
York. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy the de- 
fendant, Adolf Stern, continuously between June 15, 1917, and 
November 9, 1917, acted as business manager of the defendant, 
Bull Publishing Company, Inc., and caused to be distributed 
in the City, County and State of New York, and elsewhere 
throughout the United States, said issues of said magazine, 
"Bull," for the months of August, September and October, 
1917. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, the 
defendant, Luther S. Bedford, continuously between, on or 
about July 1, 1917, and September 1, 1917, acted as managing 
editor of said "Bull" and selected and assembled the text and 
cartoons printed in the August and September, 1917, issues 
of said magazine ; against the peace of the United States and 
their dignity and contrary to the form of the statute of the 
United States in such case made and provided. (Act approved 
June 15, 1917, Title 1, Section 4). 

SECOND COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid, on their oaths aforesaid, 
do further present that throughout the period of time from 
the 6th day of April, 1917, to the day of the finding and 
presentation of this indictment, the United States has been 
at war with the Imperial German Government and that con- 



520 My Political Trial and Experiences 

tinuously since the 15th day of June, 1917, and while the United 
States has been at war, as aforesaid, Bull Publishing Company, 
Inc., a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws 
of the State of New York, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Adolf Stem 
and Luther S. Bedford, hereinafter referred to as the defend- 
ants, at the Southern District of New York and within the 
jurisdiction of this Court, unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and 
feloniously did conspire together and agree among themselves, 
and with divers other persons whose names are to the Grand 
Jurors unknown, to violate the provisions of Section 3 of Title 
1, of the Act of Congress approved June 15, 1917, entitled "An 
Act to punish Acts of Interference with the Foreign Relations, 
the Neutrality of the Foreign Commerce of the United States, 
to punish Espionage, and better to enforce the Criminal Laws 
of the United States, and for other purposes" ; that is to say, 
the said defendants did conspire together and agree between 
themselves, and with divers other persons whose names are to 
the Grand Jurors unknown, when the United States was at 
war with the Imperial German Government, unlawfully and 
wilfully to obstruct the recruiting and enlistment service of the 
United States to the injury of the service and of the United 
States, through and by means of the publication in the City, 
State and Southern District of New York of a certain monthly 
magazine called "Bull" and the circulation and distribution 
of the same throughout the said City, State and Southern 
District of New York, and throughout the United States among 
persons, whose names are to the Grand Jurors unknown, but 
who may be and are described by the Grand Jurors as persons 
in part liable to service in the military forces of the United 
States, under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved 
May 18th, 1917, entitled "An Act to authorize the President 
to increase temporarily the Military Establishment of the 
United States" and in the other part available and eligible for 
enlistment and recruiting in the military forces of the United 
States ; said magazine being designed to contain, and con- 
taining articles, poems, cartoons and pictures calculated and 
intended to induce persons liable to military service pursuant 



The Indictments 521 

to said Act approved May 18th, 1917, to refuse to submit 
to registration and draft for service in the said miHtary forces 
and to induce persons available and eligible for enlistment 
and recruiting in said military forces to fail and refuse to enlist 
for service therein. 

And to effect the object of said conspiracy, the defendant, 
Bull Publishing Company, Inc., at divers times between June 
15, 1917, and November 9th, 1917, did cause to be printed in 
the City, County and State of New York, and to be distributed 
in said City, County and State, and elsewhere throughout the 
United States, certain issues of said magazine "Bull" for the 
months of August, September and October, 1917. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, the de- 
fendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, between June 15, 1917, and 
July 15, 1917, did write and cause to be published in the 
August, 1917, issue of "Bull" an article entitled, "The Progress 
of the War." 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, the 
defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, on or about August 9, 1917, 
did write a letter to one Bernard H. Ridder, President of the 
"Staats Zeitung," a newspaper published in the City of New 
York. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, the de- 
fendant, Adolf Stern, continuously between June 15, 1917, 
and November 9, 1917, acted as business manager of the de- 
fendant, Bull Publishing Company, Inc., and caused to be 
distributed in the City, County and State of New York, said 
issues of said magazine, "Bull," for the months of August, 
September and October, 1917. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy, the de- 
fendant, Luther S. Bedford, continuously between, on or about 
July 1, 1917, and September 1, 1917, acted as managing editor 
of said "Bull" and selected and assembled the text and cartoons 
printed in the August and September, 1917, issues of said 
magazine; against the peace of the United States and their 
dignity and contrary to the form of the statute of the United 



522 My Political Trial and Experiences 

States in such case made and provided. (Act approved June 
15, 1917, Title 1, Section 4). 

FRANCIS G. CAFFEY, 

United States Attorney." 

Endorsed: "A True Bill. 

NELSON ROBINSON, 
Foreman." 

The foregoing indictment was filed June 7, 1918. 

The indictment continuing says : — 

That on such indictment Jeremiah A. O'Leary and the other 
defendants named therein, except the defendant Bull Publish- 
ing Company, Inc., were arraigned in the United States District 
Court for the Southern District of New York, and the said 
defendants entered a plea of not guilty thereto, and the said 
District Court then and there had lawful jurisdiction to hear 
and determine the issues so raised by the said indictment and 
the pleas of not guilty thereto, and to enter judgment and pass 
sentence thereon according to law ; 

That after arraignment and plea to the aforesaid indictment, 
the defendant, Jeremiah A. O'Leary was admitted to bail in 
the sum of Twenty-five hundred dollars ($2500.00) ; 

That the trial of the indictment filed as aforesaid on the 
23rd day of November, 1917, and for which the defendant, 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary was admitted to bail in the sum of 
Twenty-five hundred dollars ($2500.00) on a recognizance con- 
ditioned that the said Jeremiah A. O'Leary would personally 
appear at the District Court of the United States of America 
for the Southern District of New York, on such day or days 
thereafter as the said District Court might order and would 
at all times render himself amenable to the orders and pro- 
cesses of the Court, to answer all matters and things as should 
be objected against him and not depart the jurisdiction of the 
Court without leave ; and if convicted, would appear for judg- 
ment, and render himself in execution thereof upon such day 
as the said District Court might order, was set for the first 
day of April, 1918; and thereafter the trial of the aforesaid 
indictment filed as aforesaid on the 23rd day of November, 



The Indictments 523 

1917, was set for the 20th day of May, 1918, of which Jeremiah 
A. O'Leary had due notice, and as to which date of trial Jere- 
miah A. O'Leary had full knowledge. 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid, on their oaths aforesaid, do 
present that heretofore, to wit, on the 2nd day of May, 1918, 
and at divers times thereafter at and within the Southern Dis- 
trict of New York and within the jurisdiction of this 
Court, John J. O'Leary, Arthur L. Lyons and Jeremiah A. 
O'Leary, hereinafter referred to as defendants, well knowing 
all of the matters of fact hereinabove alleged and set forth 
did unlawfully, knowingly, wilfully, corruptly and feloniously 
conspire, combine, confederate and agree together and 
with divers other persons to the Grand Jurors unknown 
to commit an offense against the United States, to wit, 
to violate Section 135 of the United States Criminal Code, 
that is to say, they, said defendants, did unlawfully, 
knowingly, wilfully, corruptly and feloniously Conspire, com- 
bine, confederate and agree together to corruptly influence, 
obstruct and impede and endeavor to influence and obstruct 
and impede the due administration of justice by preventing 
the trial of the indictment, hereinabove set forth, in the United 
States District Court for the Southern District of New York 
by arranging that the defendant Jeremiah A. O'Leary should 
not appear and stand trial in the said United States District 
Court aforesaid, for the crimes and offenses as set forth in 
the indictment hereinabove recited, and should escape from and 
flee the jurisdiction of the said District Court and should not 
be convicted in the said District Court for the crimes and 
offenses alleged in such indictment, and should not be punished 
in the manner prescribed by the Laws of the United States in 
such case made and provided; and it was a part of said con- 
spiracy that the aforesaid Jeremiah A. O'Leary would disap- 
pear to parts unknown and would fail to appear for trial in 
the United States District Court for the Southern District of 
New York on the 20th day of May, 1918, for the trial of the 
aforesaid indictment ; and that the said Arthur L. Lyons would 
accompany the aforesaid Jeremiah A. O'Leary and aid and 



524 My Political Trial and Experiences 

assist him to disappear to parts unknown; and that the said 
John J. O'Leary would aid, abet and assist the aforesaid Jere- 
miah A. O'Leary to disappear to parts unknown and to fail 
to appear in the United States District Court aforesaid, and 
the said John J. O'Leary would assume the management and 
care of the said Jeremiah A. O'Leary's business, law practice 
and personal affairs, and in other ways would aid, abet and 
assist in corruptly obstructing and impeding and endeavoring 
to obstruct and impede the due administration of justice in 
the United States District Court for the Southern District of 
New York. 



OVERT ACTS 

And to effect the object of said conspiracy and in pursuance 
thereof, on the 4th day of May, 1918, at the Southern District 
of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, John 
J. O'Leary prepared a power of attorney to himself from Jere- 
miah A. O'Leary. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy and in 
pursuance thereof, on the 4th day of May, 1918, at the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction 
of this Court, Jeremiah A. O'Leary signed and executed a 
power of attorney to John J. O'Leary. 

And further to effect the object of said conspiracy and in 
pursuance thereof, on the 7th day of May, 1918, at the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction 
of this Court, the said Jeremiah A. O'Leary and the said 
Arthur L. Lyons departed from the Southern District of New 
York ; against the peace of the United States and their dignity 
and contrary to the form of the statute of the United States 
in such case made and provided. (Sec. 37 U. S. C. C.) 

FRANCIS G. CAFFEY, 

United States Attorney. 



The Indictments 525 

THE CAPITAL INDICTMENT 

in the 

DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES OF 

AMERICA 

For the Southern District of New York. 
Southern District of New York, ss : 

The Grand Jurors of the United States of America, duly 
empanelled and sworn in the District Court of the United 
States for the Southern District of New York and inquiring 
for that District, on their oaths present that continuously and 
at all times from the 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of 
the presentation and filing of this indictment, the United States 
has been at war with the Imperial German Government; that 
continuously and at all times from the 1st day of September, 
1914, to the date of the presentation and filing of this in- 
dictment, the nations of Great Britain, France and Belgium 
have been at war with said Imperial German Government; 
that from said 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the pre- 
sentation and filing of this indictment, the United States has 
been co-operating with the said nations of Great Britain, 
France and Belgium in the prosecution of said war and with 
respect to the plans and conduct of the naval and military 
operations against said Imperial German Government, and 
with respect to works and measures undertaken for and con- 
nected with the defense of such places within the territory 
of France and Belgium and of such places on the seacoast 
of Ireland as could be subject to attack by the military and 
naval forces of the Imperial German Government, and with 
respect to the national and public defense of the United 
States in said war with said Imperial German Government. 

That from the 11th day of November, 1916, and continu- 
ously thereafter to the date of the presentation and fihng of 
this indictment, the said Imperial German Government, and 
the naval department thereof, had maintained in the United 
States, Carl Rodiger, alias Carl Roediger, alias Hermann 
Wessels, alias Haro Schroejers, alias H. Schmidt, alias M. 



526 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Schmidt, alias P. Stamm, alias H. Stamm, alias Dillon, alias 
Hudson, who was not accredited by said Imperial German 
Government to the United States and was not included among 
the diplomatic or consular representatives of said Imperial 
German Government, but who gained admission to the United 
States by fraud, false statements, fraudulent passport, and 
other deceptive means to the Grand Jurors unknown, and by 
falsely and fraudulently representing himself to be a citizen 
of Switzerland, and who was throughout said period a citizen 
and subject of the Imperial German Government, and a mem- 
ber of the naval forces thereof, and a representative, agent 
and employee thereof ; that from the 21st day oi January, 1917, 
and continuously thereafter to the date of the presentation 
and filing of this indictment, the said Imperial German Gov- 
ernment, and the office for foreign affairs thereof, had and 
maintained in the United States, Maria K. de Victorica, alias 
Maria Victorica, alias Marie de Vussiere, alias Clark, alias 
Maria von Kretschman, alias Baroness von Kretschman, who 
was not accredited by said Imperial German Government to 
the United States, and who was not included among the dip- 
lomatic or consular representatives of said Imperial German 
Government, but who gained admission to the United States 
by fraud, false statements, fraudulent passport, and other de- 
ceptive means to the Grand Jurors unknown, and by falsely 
and fraudulently representing herself to be a citizen of Ar- 
gentina, and who was throughout said period a representative, 
agent and employee of the Imperial German Government, and 
of the office for foreign affairs thereof; that said Rodiger 
and said de Victorica, each throughout the period he and she 
were respectively maintained in the United States as afore- 
said, was acting as such representative, agent and employee 
of the Imperial German Government, in behalf of said Im- 
perial German Government, in assisting the* military and 
naval operations of said Imperial German Government against 
the said nations of Great Britain, France and Belgium, and, 
subsequent to the 6th day of April, 1917, against the United 
States, and was charged by said Imperial German Government 



The Indictments 527 

with the duty of communicating and transmitting to said Im- 
perial German Government, and with the duty of collecting 
and recording with intent that the same should be com- 
municated to the Imperial German Government, and with the 
duty of attempting and aiding and inducing others to com- 
municate and deliver and transmit to the Imperial German 
Government information relating and with respect to the pub- 
lic and national defence of the United States, and to the 
prosecution of the war by the said nations of Great Britain, 
France and Belgium against said Imperial German Govern- 
ment, and, subsequent to April 6, 1917, to the prosecution of 
the war against said Imperial German Government by the 
United States, to wit : information relating and with respect 
to citizens of the United States and natives of Ireland and 
other persons residing in the United States who' would be 
willing or could be induced and persuaded to assist the Im- 
perial German Government in the prosecution of its war 
against each and all of the aforesaid nations with which said 
Imperial German Government was at war, and to hamper and 
hinder Great Britain, France, Belgium, and the United States, 
in the prosecution of said war against said Imperial German 
Government, and information relating and with respect to 
what was being done and what could and would be done by 
such citizens of the United States and such natives of Ireland 
and such other persons residing in the United States as 
aforesaid, either alone or in connivance and cooperation with 
divers persons residing in Ireland, to aid Germany in landing 
troops in Ireland, in supplying munitions to said troops, in 
causing injury to and destruction of bridges, factories, mines, 
machinery and other enterprises in Great Britain engaged 
in and used for the production and transportation of mihtary 
supplies, and the transportation and support of military forces, 
and information relating and with respect to ways and means 
of inducing residents in Ireland to attack the military forces 
of Great Britain, and of bringing about, furthering and assist- 
ing revolt, mutiny and resistance in Ireland against Great 
Britain, and information relating and with respect to con- 



528 My Political Trial and Experiences 

ditions and sentiments and movements in Ireland antagonistic 
to Great Britain in the prosecution of the war against the Im- 
perial German Government, and information relating and with 
respect to what extent and in what way residents of Ireland 
would co-operate with the Imperial German Government in 
the prosecution of said war against said nations of France, 
Belgium, Great Britain, and the United States, and informa- 
tion relating and with respect to raising and collecting funds 
in the United States to finance all said operations, and informa- 
tion relating and with respect to ways and means of using said 
funds, and such other funds and supplies as might be raised 
and contributed in Ireland and by the Imperial German Gov- 
ernment, for the purposes aforesaid, and information relating 
and with respect to what propaganda, exhortations, influence, 
organization, secret conniving and financial assistance, it would 
be advisable and practicable to use in accomplishing the afore- 
said purposes, and information relating and with respect to 
what measures could and would be taken by the Government of 
the United States and by the officers and officials thereof to 
check and prevent assistance, aid and comfort from being ren- 
dered and furnished by citizens of the United States and 
natives of (Ireland and other persons residing in the United 
States to persons who would join in the enterprise residing in 
Ireland and in other parts of Great Britain and to the Imperial 
German Government in bringing about and carrying on revolt 
in Ireland against the Government of Great Britain and 
hampering and embarrassing and diminishing the military 
power of Great Britain in the said war against the Imperial 
German Government, and information relating and with 
respect to the necessity and probability of Great Britain with- 
drawing certain of its military forces from France and Belgium 
and keeping certain of its military forces in Ireland, and in- 
formation relating and with respect to the extent, manner, and 
effectiveness of the co-operation between the military forces 
of Great Britain and the United States, and the manner and 
extent by and to which such co-operation could and might be 
hampered, and to what extent and in what way the military 



The Indictments 529 

power of the United States could and might be lessened in 
combating the military power of said Imperial German Gov- 
ernment. 

That from the said 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the 
presentation and filing of this indictment, John T. Ryan, 
Jeremiah A. O' Leary, Willard J. Robinson, Albert Paul 
Fricke, and Emil Kipper were throughout said period citizens 
of the United States, and Rudolph Binder from said 6th day of 
April, 1917, to the date of his death, on September 20, 1917, 
was a citizen of the United States, and Hugo Schweitzer, from 
said 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of his death, on Decem- 
ber 23, 1917, was a citizen of the United States ; that the said 
John T. Ryan, alias William West, alias "Buffalo," Maria K. 
de Victorica, alias Maria Victorica, alias Marie de Vussiere, 
alias Clark, alias Maria von Kretschman, alias Baroness von 
Kretschman, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Carl Rodiger, alias Carl 
Roediger, alias Herman Wessels, alias Haro Schroejers, alias 
H. Schmidt, alias M. Schmidt, alias P. Stamm, alias H. Stamm, 
alias Dillon, alias Hudson, Willard J. Robinson, alias Robbie, 
alias John Young, alias Robert Lewis, Albert Paul Fricke, 
alias Schmidt, and Emil Kipper, who are herein indicted and re- 
ferred to as "defendants," and the said Rudolf Binder and Hugo 
Schweitzer until the dates of their respective deaths, and divers 
other persons within and without the United States whose 
names are to the Grand Jurors unknown (the said defendants, 
the said deceased persons, and the said divers other persons 
being herein referred to as "conspirators"), continuously and 
at all times from the 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of 
the presentation and filing of this indictment, unlawfully, wil- 
fully and feloniously conspired to violate the provisions of 
sub-section (a) of Section 2 of Title I of the Act entitled 
"An Act to punish acts of interference with the foreign rela- 
tions, the neutrality and the foreign commerce of the United 
States, to punish espionage, and better to enforce the criminal 
laws of the United States, and for other purposes," approved 
June 15, 1917; the said conspirators continuing to conspire 
in manner and form as hereinafter set forth throughout said 



530 My Political Trial and Experiences 

period from April 6, 1917, to the date of the presentation and 
filing of this indictment, the said conspiracy, so continuing, 
becoming an offense against the United States continuously 
and at all times from the 15th day of June, 1917, to the date 
of the presentation and filing of this indictment. 

That the said conspirators unlawfully, wilfully and felon- 
iously, from the said 15th day of June, 1917, continuously to 
the date and presentation and filing of this indictment, in the 
County of New York, State of New York, and Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
each throughout said period well knowing all the facts set 
forth in this indictment, conspired to violate the provisions 
of sub-section (a) of Section 2 of Title I of the aforesaid Act, 
that is to say, that they, the said conspirators, conspired as 
aforesaid, that in time of war and while the United States 
should be at war, as aforesaid, with the Imperial German 
Government, the said conspirators with intent on their part 
and of each of them, and with reason to believe that certain in- 
formation relating to the national defense hereinafter des- 
cribed, was to be used to the injury of the United States 
and to the advantage of a foreign nation, to wit : the Imperial 
German Government, knowingly and wilfully should com- 
municate, deliver, transmit and attempt to communicate, 
deliver and transmit, and knowingly and wilfully should aid 
and induce divers other persons, (whose names are to the 
Grand Jurors unknown, and who are herein described as such 
persons whom the said conspirators would be able to aid, in- 
duce and hire to leave the United States for Germany and for 
other places outside the United States at which they would be 
able to deliver such information to agents and representa- 
tives of the Imperial German Government, to be transmitted 
to said Imperial German Government) , to communicate, deliver 
and transmit said information to said foreign government, to 
wit: the Imperial German Government, and to the office for 
foreign affairs and the naval department thereof, within said 
foreign country of Germany, and to the said Rodiger, a 
representative, agent, employee, subject and citizen thereof, 



The Indictments 531 

as the said conspirators then and there well knew, and to the 
said de Victorica, a representative, agent and employee thereof, 
as the said conspirators then and there well knew, the said 
information being information relating to the national defense 
of the United States in said war with said Imperial German 
Government, to wit : information relating and with respect to 
citizens of the United States and natives of Ireland and other 
persons residing in the United States who would be willing or 
could be induced and persuaded to assist the Imperial German 
Government in the prosecution of its war against each and all 
of the aforesaid nations with which said Imperial German Gov- 
ernment was at war, and to hamper and hinder Great Britain, 
France, Belgium, and the United States, in the prosecution of 
said war against said Imperial German Government, and in- 
formation relating and with respect to what was being done and 
what could and would be done by such citizens of the United 
States and such natives of Ireland and such other persons 
residing in the United States as aforesaid, either alone or in 
connivance and co-operation with divers persons residing in 
Ireland, to aid Germany in landing troops in Ireland, in supply- 
ing munitions to said troops, in causing injury to and the 
destruction of bridges, factories, mines, machinery and other 
enterprises in Great Britain engaged in and used for the pro- 
duction and transportation of military supplies, and the trans- 
portation and support of military forces, and information 
relating and with respect to ways and means of inducing resi- 
dents in Ireland to attack the military forces of Great Britain, 
and of bringing about, furthering and assisting revolt, mutiny 
and resistance in Ireland against Great Britain, and infor- 
mation relating and with respect to conditions and sentiments 
and movements in Ireland antagonistic to Great Britain in the 
prosecution of the war against the Imperial German Govern- 
ment, and information relating and with respect to what extent 
and in what way residents of Ireland would co-operate with 
the Imperial German Government in the prosecution of said 
war against said nations of France, Belgium, Great Britain, 
and the United States, and information relating and with 



532 My Political Trial and Experiences 

respect to raising and collecting funds in the United States to 
finance all said operations, and information relating and with 
respect to ways and means of using said funds, and such other 
funds and supplies as might be raised and contributed in 
Ireland and by the Imperial German Government, for the 
purposes aforesaid, and information relating and with respect 
to what propaganda, exhortations, injfluence, organization, 
secret conniving, and financial assistance, it would be advisable 
and practicable to use in accomplishing the aforesaid purposes, 
and information relating and with respect to what measures 
could and would be taken by the Government of the United 
States and by the offtcers and officials thereof to check and 
prevent assistance, aid and comfort from being rendered and 
furnished by citizens of the United States and natives of 
Ireland and other persons residing in the United States to 
persons who would join in the enterprise residing in Ireland 
and in other parts of Great Britain and to the Imperial German 
Government in bringing about and carrying on revolt in 
Ireland against the Government of Great Britain and hamper- 
ing and embarrassing and diminishing the military power of 
Great Britain in the said war against the Imperial German 
Government, and information relating and with respect to the 
necessity and probability of Great Britain withdrawing certain 
of its military forces from France and Belgium and keeping 
certain of its military forces in Ireland, and information 
relating and with respect to the extent, manner, and effective- 
ness of the co-operation between the military forces of Great 
Britain and the United States, and the manner and extent by 
and to which such co-operation could and might be hampered, 
and to what extent and in what way the military power of the 
United States could and might be lessened in combating the 
military power of said Imperial German Government. 

OVERT ACTS. 

And to effect the object of the said conspiracy, heretofore, 
to wit, on the 29th day of June, 1917, in the County of New 
York, State of New York, in the Southern District of New 



The Indictments 533 

York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the defendant 
Albert Paul Fricke caused to be paid to the defendant Carl 
Rodiger the sum of One Thousand Dollars ($1000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 15th day of July, 1917, at Long Beach 
on Long Island, in the State of New York, the defendants 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary and Willard J. Robinson met the defen- 
dant Maria K. de Victorica ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore; to wit, on the 17th day of July, 1917, in the County of 
New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, Rudolf 
Binder (now deceased) caused to be paid to the defendant 
Carl Rodiger the sum of Two Thousand Dollars ($2000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 20th day of July, 1917, in the County of 
New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the 
defendants John T. Ryan and Jeremiah A. O'Leary took the 
defendant Maria K. de Victorica to a certain place on River- 
side Drive, in the County of New York, within the Southern 
District of New York (the exact place being to the Grand 
Jurors unknown), and there met a man whom the said de- 
fendant John T. Ryan referred to as Henry Hurley (the real 
name being to the Grand Jurors unknown) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 28th day of July, 1917, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
the defendant Albert Paul Fricke caused a cablegram to be 
sent from the County of New York, in the State of New York, 
in the District aforesaid, to Olten, Switzerland ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 8th day of August, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District 
of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the 
defendant Albert Paul Fricke caused to be paid to the defen- 
dant Carl Rodiger the sum of One Thousaud Dollars ($1000) ; 



534 My Political Trial and Experiences 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 17th day of August, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District 
of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, Rudolf 
Binder (now deceased) caused to be paid to the defendant 
Carl Rodiger the sum of Five Thousand Dollars ($5000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 6th day of September, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the 
defendant Albert Paul Fricke caused to be paid to the defen- 
dant Carl Rodiger the sum of One Thousand Dollars ($1000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 9th day of September, 1917, at Long 
Beach on Long Island, in the State of New York, the defen- 
dant John T. Ryan met the defendant Maria K. de Victorica ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 15th day of September, 1917, in the Coun- 
ty of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District 
of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant Albert Paul Fricke paid to the defendant Carl Rodiger 
the sum of Three Thousand Dollars ($3000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 25th day of October, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant John T. Ryan caused to be paid to the defendant 
Maria K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Dollars 
($1000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 30th day of October, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant John T, Ryan caused to be paid to the defendant Maria 
K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Dollars ($1000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 15th day of November, 1917, in the 



The Indictments 535 

County of New York, State of New York, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
the defendant John T. Ryan caused to be paid to the defendant 
Maria K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Five Hun- 
dred Dollars ($1500) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit: on the 10th day of November, 1917, in the 
County of New York, State of New York, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
the defendant John T. Ryan caused to be paid to the defen- 
dant Maria K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Dollars 
($1000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, in the County of New York, State of New York, in the 
Southern District of New York and within the jurisdiction of 
this Court, the defendant Albert Paul Fricke paid to the de- 
fendant Carl Rodiger the following sums of money on the fol- 
lowing dates, to wit : 

October 1, 1917 $100 

November 1, 1917 100 

December 1, 1917 100 

January 1, 1918 100 

February 2, 1918 100 

March 1, 1918 100 

April 1, 1918 200 

May 1, 1918 200 

Against the peace of the United States and their dignity, and 
contrary to the form of the statute of the United States in 
such case made and provided (Sections 2 and 4 of Title I of 
the Act of June 15, 1917). 

SECOND COUNT 

And the Grand Jurors aforesaid, on their oaths aforesaid, do 
further present that continuously and at all times from the 
6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the presentation and filing 
of this indictment, the United States has been at war with the 



536 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Imperial German Government; that continuously and at all 
times from the 1st day of September, 1914, to the date of the 
presentation and filing of this indictment, the nations of Great 
Britain, France and Belgium have been at war with said Im- 
perial German Government; that from said 6th day of April, 
1917, to the date of the presentation and filing of this indict- 
ment, the United States has been co-operating with the said 
nations of Great Britain, France and Belgium in the prosecu- 
tion of said war and with respect to the plans and conduct of 
the naval and military operations against said Imperial Ger- 
man Government, and with respect to works and measures un- 
dertaken for and connected with the defense of such places 
within the territory of France and Belgium and of such places 
on the sea coast of Ireland as could be subject to attack by the 
military and naval forces of the Imperial German Government, 
and with respect to the national and public defense of the 
United States in said war with said Imperial German Govern- 
ment. 

That from the 11th day of November, 1916, and continuously 
thereafter to the date of the presentation and filing of this 
indictment, the said Imperial German Government, and the 
naval department thereof, had and maintained in the United 
States, Carl Rodiger, alias Carl Roediger, alias Hermann Wes- 
sels, alias Haro Schroejers, alias H, Schmidt, alias M. Schmidt, 
alias P. Stamm, alias H. Stamm, alias Dillon, alias Hudson, 
who was not accredited by said Imperial German Government 
to the United States, and was not included among the diplo- 
matic or consular representatives of said Imperial German Gov- 
ernment, but who gained admission to the United States by 
fraud, false statements, fraudulent passport, and other decep- 
tive means to the Grand Jurors unknown, and by falsely and 
fraudulently representing himself tO' be a citizen of Switzerland, 
and who was throughout said period a citizen and subject of 
the Imperial German Government, and a member of the naval 
forces thereof, and a representative, agent and employee 
thereof; that from the 21st day of January, 1917, and con- 
tinuously thereafter to the date of the presentation and filing 



The Indictments 537 

of this indictment, the said Imperial German Government, and 
the office for foreign affairs thereof, had and maintained in the 
United States, Maria K. de Victorica, aHas Maria Victorica, 
alias Marie de Vussiere, aHas Clark, alias Maria von Kretsch- 
man, alias Baroness von Kretschman, M^ho was not accredited 
by said Imperial German Government to the United States, 
and who was not included among the diplomatic or consular 
representatives of said Imperial German Government but who 
gained admission to the United States by fraud, false state- 
ments, fraudulent passport, and other deceptive means to the 
Grand Jurors unknown, and by falsely and fraudulently repre- 
senting herself to be a citizen of Argentina, and who was 
throughout said period a representative, agent and employee 
of the Imperial German Government, and of the office for 
foreign affairs thereof ; that said Rodiger and said de Victorica, 
each throughout the period he and she were respectively main- 
tained in the United States as aforesaid, was acting as such 
representative, agent and employee of the Imperial German 
Government, in behalf of said Imperial German Government, 
in assisting the military and naval operations of said Imperial 
German Government against the said nations of Great Britain, 
France and Belgium, and, subsequent to the 6th day of April, 
1917, against the United States, and was charged by said 
Imperial German Government with the duty of communicating 
and transmitting to said Imperial German Government, and 
with the duty of collecting and recording with intent that the 
same should be communicated to the Imperial German Gov- 
ernment, and with the duty of attempting and aiding and 
inducing others to communicate and deliver and transmit to the 
Imperial German Government, information relating and with 
respect to the public and national defense of the United States, 
and to the prosecution of the war by the said nations of Great 
Britain, France and Belgium against said Imperial German 
Government, and, subsequent to April 6, 1917, to the prosecu- 
tion of the war against said Imperial German Government by 
the United States, to wit : information relating and with respect 
to citizens of the United States and natives of Ireland and 



538 My Political Trial and Experiences 

other persons residing in the United States who would be 
willing or could be induced and persuaded to assist the Im- 
perial German Government in the prosecution of its war 
against each and all of the aforesaid nations with which said 
Imperial German Government was at war, and to hamper 
and hinder Great Britain, France, Belgium, and the United 
States, in the prosecution of said war against said Imperial 
German Government, and information relating and with 
respect to what was being done and what could and would 
be done by such citizens of the United States and such natives 
of Ireland and such other persons residing in the United States 
as aforesaid, either alone or in connivance and co-operation 
with divers persons residing in Ireland, to aid Germany in 
landing troops in Ireland, in supplying munitions to said 
troops, in causing injury to and the destruction of bridges, 
factories, mines, machinery and other enterprises in Great 
Britain engaged in and used for the production and transporta- 
tion of military supplies, and the transportation and support 
of military forces, and information relating and with respect 
to ways and means of inducing residents in Ireland to attack 
the military forces of Great Britain, and of bringing about, 
furthering and assisting revolt, mutiny and resistance in Ire- 
land against Great Britain, and information relating and with 
respect to conditions and sentiments and movements in Ireland 
antagonistic to Great Britain in the prosecution of the war 
against the Imperial German Government, and information 
relating and with respect to what extent and in what way 
residents of Ireland would co-operate with the Imperial Ger- 
man Government in the prosecution of said war against said 
nations of France, Belgium, Great Britain, and the United 
States, and information relating and with respect to raising 
and collecting funds in the United States to finance all said 
operations, and information relating and with respect to ways 
and means of using said funds, and such other funds and 
supplies as might be raised and contributed in Ireland and by 
the Imperial German Government, for the purposes aforesaid, 
and information relating and with respect to what propaganda, 



The Indictments 539 

exhortations, influence, organization, secret conniving, and 
financial assistance, it would be advisable and practicable to 
use in accomplishing the aforesaid purposes, and information 
relating and with respect to what measures could and would 
be taken by the Government of the United States and by the 
officers and officials thereof to check and prevent assistance, 
aid and comfort from being rendered and furnished by citizens 
of the United States and natives of Ireland and other persons 
residing in the United States to persons who would join in the 
enterprise residing in Ireland and in other parts of Great 
Britain and to the Imperial German Government in bringing 
about and carrying on revolt in Ireland against the Govern- 
ment of Great Britain and hampering and embarrassing and 
diminishing the military power of Great Britain in the said 
war against the Imperial German Government, and informa- 
tion relating and with respect to the necessity and probability 
of Great Britain withdrawing certain of its military forces 
from France and Belgium and keeping certain of its military 
forces in Ireland, and information relating and with respect 
to the extent, manner, and effectiveness of the cooperation 
between the military forces of Great Britain and the United 
States, and the manner and extent by and to which such co- 
operation could and might be hampered, and to what extent 
and in what way the military power of the United States could 
and might be lessened in combating the mihtary power of said 
Imperial German Government. 

That from the said 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of the 
presentation and filing of this indictment , John T. Ryan, 
Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Willard J. Robinson, Albert Paul 
Fricke, and Emil Kipper were throughout said period citizens 
of the United States, and Rudolf Binder from said 6th day of 
April, 1917, to the date of his death, on September 20, 1917, 
was a citizen of the United States, and Hugo Schweitzer from 
said 6th day of April, 1917, to the date of his death, on Decem- 
ber 23, 1917, was a citizen of the United States ; that the said 
John T. Ryan, alias William West, alias "Buffalo," Maria K. 
de Victorica, alias Maria Victorica, alias Marie de Vussiere, 



540 My Political Trial and Experiences 

alias Clark, alias Maria von Kretschman, alias Baroness von 
Kretschman, Jeremiah A. O'Leary, Carl Rodiger, alias Carl 
Roediger, alias Hermann Wessels, alias Haro Schroejers, alias 
H. Schmidt, alias M. Schmidt, alias P. Stamm, alias H. Stamm, 
alias Dillon, alias Hudson, Willard J. Robinson, alias Robbie, 
alias John Young, alias Robert Lewis, Albert Paul Fricke, alias 
Schmidt, and Emil Kipper, who are herein indicted and referred 
to as "defendants," and the said Rudolf Binder and Hugo 
Schweitzer until the dates of their respective deaths, and 
divers other persons within and without the United States 
whose names are to the Grand Jurors unknown (the said 
defendants, the said deceased persons and the said divers other 
persons being herein referred to as "conspirators"), con- 
tinuously and at all times from the 6th day of April, 1917, to 
the date of the presentation and filing of this indictment, un- 
lawfully, wilfully and feloniously conspired to violate the pro- 
visions of sub-section (b) of Section 2 of Title I of the Act 
entitled "An Act to punish acts of interference with the for- 
eign relations, the neutrality and the foreign commerce of the 
United States, to punish espionage, and better to enforce the 
criminal laws of the United States, and for other purposes," 
approved June 15, 1917; the said conspirators continuing to 
conspire in manner and form as hereinafter set forth through- 
out said period from April 6, 1917, to the date of the presenta- 
tion and filing of this indictment, the said conspiracy, so con- 
tinuing, becoming an offense against the United States con- 
tinuously and at all times from the 15th day of June, 1917, to 
the date of the presentation and filing of this indictment. 

That the said conspirators unlawfully, wilfully and felon- 
iously, from the said 15th day of June, 1917, continuously to 
the date of the presentation and filing of this indictment, in the 
County of New York, State of New York, and Southern Dis- 
trict of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
each throughout said period well knowing all the facts set forth 
in this indictment, conspired to violate the provisions of sub- 
section (b) of Section 2 of Title I of the aforesaid Act, that 
is to say, that they, the said conspirators, conspired as afore- 



The Indictments 541 

said that in time of war and while the United States should be 
at war, as aforesaid, with the Imperial German Government, 
the said conspirators, with the intent on their part and of each 
of them that the information hereinafter described should be 
communicated to the Imperial German Government, the enemy 
of the United States, should knowingly and wilfully collect, 
record, communicate, and attempt to elicit information with 
respect to the plans and conduct and supposed plans and con- 
duct of the naval and military operations of the United States 
and of Great Britain acting in co-operation with the United 
States, and with respect to works and measures undertaken 
for and connected with and intended for the defense of such 
places within the territory of France and Belgium and of such 
places on the seacoast of Ireland as would be subject to attack 
by the military and naval forces of the 'Imperial German Gov- 
ernment, and other information relating to the public defense, 
which, to the knowledge of said conspirators and each of them, 
might be useful to the Imperial German Government, the 
enemy of the United States ; to wit : information relating and 
with respect to citizens of the United States and natives of 
Ireland and other persons residing in the United States who 
would be willing or could be induced and persuaded to assist 
the Imperial German Government in the prosecution of its war 
against each and all of the aforesaid nations with which said 
Imperial German Government was at war, and to hamper and 
hinder Great Britain, France, Belgium, and the United States, 
in the prosecution of said war against said Imperial German 
Government, and information relating and with respect to 
what was being done and what could and would be done by 
such citizens of the United States and such natives of Ireland 
and such other persons residing in the United States as afore- 
said, either alone or in connivance and co-operation with divers 
persons residing in Ireland, to aid Germany in landing troops 
in Ireland, in supplying munitions to said troops, in causing 
injury to and the destruction of bridges, factories, mines, 
machinery and other enterprises in Great Britain engaged in 
and used for the production and transportation of military sup- 



542 My Political Trial and Experiences 

plies, and the transportation and support of military forces, 
and information relating and with respect to ways and means of 
inducing- residents in Ireland to attack the military forces of 
Great Britain, and of bringing about, furthering and assisting 
revolt, mutiny and resistance in Ireland against Great Britain, 
and information relating and with respect to conditions and 
sentiments and movements in Ireland antagonistic to Great 
Britain in the prosecution of the war against the Imperial Ger- 
man Government, and information relating and with respect to 
what extent and in what way residents of Ireland would co- 
operate with the Imperial German Government in the prosecu- 
tion of said war against said nations of France, Belgium, Great 
Britain and the United States, and information relating and 
with respect to raising and collecting funds in the United 
States to finance all said operations, and information relating 
and with respect to ways and means of using said funds, and 
such other funds and supplies as might be raised and con- 
tributed in Ireland and by the Imperial German Government, 
for the purposes aforesaid, and information relating and with 
respect to what propaganda, exhortations, influence, organiza- 
tion, secret conniving, and financial assistance, it would be 
advisable and practicable to use in accomplishing the aforesaid 
purposes, and information relating and with respect to what 
measures could and would be taken by the Government of the 
United States and by the officers and officials thereof to check 
and prevent assistance, aid and comfort from being rendered 
and furnished by citizens of the United States and natives of 
Ireland and other persons residing in the United States to per- 
sons who would join in the enterprise residing in Ireland and 
in other parts of Great Britain and to the Imperial German 
Government in bringing about and carrying on revolt in 'Ire- 
rand against the Government of Great Britain and hampering 
and embarrassing and diminishing the military power of Great 
Britain in the said war against the Imperial German Govern- 
ment, and information relating and with respect to the 
necessity and probability of Great Britain withdrawing certain 
of its military forces from France and Belgium and keeping 



The Indictments 543 

certain of its military forces in Ireland, and information re- 
lating and with respect to the extent, manner, and eflfectiveness 
of the co-operation between the military forces of Great Britain 
and the United States, and the manner and extent by and to 
which such co-operation could and might be hampered, and to 
what extent and in what way the military power of the United 
States could and might be lessened in combating the military 
power of said Imperial German Government, 



OVERT ACTS 

And to effect the object of the said conspiracy, heretofore, 
to wit, on the 29th day of June, 1917, in the County of New 
York, State of New York, in the Southern District of New 
York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the defendant 
Albert Paul Fricke caused to be paid to the defendant Carl 
Rodiger the sum of One Thousand Dollars ($1000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 15th day of July, 1917, at Long Beach on 
Long Island, in the State of New York, the defendants Jere- 
miah A. O'Leary and Willard J. Robinson met the defendant 
Maria K. de Victorica ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 17th day of July, in the County of New 
York, State of New York, in the Southern District of New 
York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, Rudolf Binder 
(now deceased) caused to be paid to the defendant Carl Rod- 
iger the sum of Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 20th day of July, 1917, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
the defendants John T. Ryan and Jeremiah A. O'Leary took 
the defendant Maria K. de Victorica to a certain place on 
Riverside Drive, in the County of New York, within the South- 
ern District of New York (the exact place being to the Grand 



544 My Political Trial and Experiences 

Jurors unknown), and there met a man whom the said de- 
fendant John T. Ryan referred to as Henry Hurley (the real 
name being to the Grand Jurors unknown) ; 

And further to efifect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit,. on the 28th day of July, 1917, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
the defendant Albert Paul Fricke caused a cablegram to be sent 
from the County of New York, in the State of New York, in 
the District aforesaid, to Olten, Switzerland; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 8th day of August, 1917, in the County of 
New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant Albert Paul Fricke caused to be paid to the defendant 
Carl Rodiger the sum of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 17th day of August, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, Rudolf 
Binder (now deceased) caused to be paid to the defendant 
Carl Rodiger the sum of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 6th day of September, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant Albert Paul Fricke caused to be paid to the defendant 
Carl Rodiger the sum of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 9th day of September, 1917, at Long 
Beach on Long Island, in the State of New York, the defendant 
John T. Ryan met the defendant Maria K. de Victorica ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 15th day of September, 1917, in the 
County of New York, State of New York, in the Southern 



The Indictments 545 

District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
the defendant Albert Paul Fricke paid tO' the defendant Carl 
Rodiger the sum of Three Thousand Dollars ($3,000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 25th day of October, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant John T. Ryan caused to be paid tO' the defendant 
Maria K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Dollars 
($1,000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 30th day of October, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant John T. Ryan caused to be paid to the defendant 
Maria K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Dollars 
($1000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 5th day of November, 1917, in the County 
of New York, State of New York, in the Southern District of 
New York, and within the jurisdiction of this Court, the de- 
fendant John T. Ryan caused to be paid to the defendant Maria 
K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Five Hundred Dol- 
lars ($1,500) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, to wit, on the 10th day of November, 1917, in the 
County of New York, State of New York, in the Southern 
District of New York and within the jurisdiction of this Court, 
the defendant John T. Ryan caused to be paid to the defendant 
Maria K. de Victorica the sum of One Thousand Dollars 
($1,000) ; 

And further to effect the object of the said conspiracy, here- 
tofore, in the County of New York, State of New York, in the 
Southern District of New York, and within the jurisdiction of 
this Court, the defendant Albert Paul Fricke paid to the de- 



546 My Political Trial and Experiences 

fendant Carl Rodiger the following sums of money on the fol- 
lowing dates, to wit: 

October 1, 1917 $100 

November 1, 1917- $100 

December 1, 1917 $100 

January 1, 1918 $100 

February 2, 1918 $100 

March 1, 1918 $100 

April 1, 1918 $200 

May 1, 1918 $200 

Against the peace of the United States and their dignity, and 
contrary to the form of the statute of the United States in such 
case made and provided (sections 2 and 4 of Title I of the 
Act of June 15, 1917). 

FRANCIS G. CAFFEY, 
United States Attorney. 






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